


Raising Paladins

by Chibi_Pix



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Blade of Marmora Haxus, Illustrations, It's fairly dark, Mentions of Death, Tags to be added, blade of marmora, does it count if i beta my own work?, fated to be paladins, i honestly don't know how to tag this, mentions of dead characters, oof this will hurt, pidge raised by the galra, some language, some violence, this AU will have a lot of unhappiness
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-01
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-01 05:41:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 64
Words: 137,401
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23419924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chibi_Pix/pseuds/Chibi_Pix
Summary: A group of kids find themselves destined to pilot Voltron as marks of the paladins show up. One such child is Katie Holt. Not long after she is born on a space station, it is attacked by Sendak and Katie is taken to Emperor Zarkon. Given a new name and a Galran upbringing, Katie, now Pidge, has to try and find her place in the universe, teetering between her loyalty to the empire that raised her and the paladins she would one day meet.
Comments: 102
Kudos: 51





	1. Katie Holt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, Raising Paladins finally getting written and uploaded!  
> This AU is fairly dark, also consisting of language, some violence, and mentions of death (thus its mature warning to be on the safe side).

**Name:** Gaia Space Station

 **Location:** Orbiting Neptune.

 **Date:** April 7th, 22XX

Dr. Colleen Holt smiled as she sat down, holding onto her daughter who had just been born a few days prior. Katherine Holt, Katie for short, was conceived and born on the station, and more than that, she was born special.

Years prior, aliens landed on Earth. They were referred to as The Blade of Marmora, a group of Galra rebels trying to take down a tyrant many, many lightyears from the small, terrestrial planet. On the isolated planet, there was a valuable weapon, a ship… a mechanical lion. It was called a Lion of Voltron, and the Blade of Marmora made it their mission to keep it safe.

After a few years, through a mutual friend they had met, they learned that a paladin lived on that secluded planet. The paladin was known as Takashi Shirogane, often just called Shiro. After learning about him through their Earthling ally, a man who was often just called _Chief_ , they made the step forward to meeting with the Galaxy Garrison, a military group meant for space exploration and Earth defense.

This started the aliance between the two groups, working to protect the planet and the lion. And as the years passed, they were very much surprised to find that three more paladins were born to the planet, one even born of the Earthling, Chief, and a Blade named Krolia.

Four paladins. This made four. And then Katie was born, a darkened patch of skin shaped like a paw print on her left shoulder. She was the fifth and final paladin, stunning everyone to have all five technically born of Earth, but thrilled and relieved in the end for this made it easier to protect them.

**“Wow, Mommy!”** a small boy called through the screen, going through video communications from Earth. While his parents were on the Gaia station, he was on Earth, being cared for by the Garrison and even the Blade of Marmora leader, Kolivan. **“Is he my baby brother?”**

“She’s your baby sister.” Colleen corrected. “Meet Katie.”

 **“She’s adorable.”** Commander Iverson, close friend of the Holt family and one of the first people to accept the Galra rebels. **“And I see she’s got the mark of the paladin on her.”**

“Indeed.” Commander Sam Holt, Colleen’s husband and one of the lead commanders of their mission on the station, stated. “We wanted to inform you guys of this. Kolivan, you’ve been caring for the other paladins; what is your call?”

Kolivan observed them. He did not want to separate a child from its parents, especially a newborn, but he knew she, like the others, needed to be safe. And though the children are separated, they always get to go home and see their families, the families informed of the situation so that they could understand why their children needed to be protected and trained when they got older.

 **“We’ll be able to reach you in a few days to retrieve her, if you do not mind; I feel it would be best for her to be secured and protected here.”** Kolivan rationalized.

“Colleen?” Sam looked over.

Colleen smiled fondly at her daughter, seeming to think over what Kolivan recommended. “Our mission has another year on it...”

 **“Actually, Coleen,”** Iverson spoke up, **“there is no harm in you two coming home, too; the mission is going well and Sam can continue working on it from here while you both help to raise Katie with the Blade.”**

The two looked to each other, silently contemplating that. Then Sam nodded. “We’ll take you up on that offer. And we’ll see you in a few days.” He then chuckled when Katie started crying.

“And that’s my cue.” Colleen chuckled. “I’ll see you soon, Matt. You be good, okay?”

 **“I’ll be better than good!”** Matt cheered. **“And I’ll be an awesome big brother! Bye bye, Katie! See you soon!”** He blew kisses to her.

Colleen gave another farewell before leaving the room to tend to Katie’s needs, a Blade outside waiting for her.

“Anything I can assist with?” the masked Galra inquired.

“If you would be so kind as to prep a bottle for her, I would appreciate it.” Colleen responded. The Blade nodded and ran ahead. By the time Colleen reached the kitchen, the Galra had finished fixing the bottle and tried to hand it over. “Why don’t you try feeding her, Ryl? Don’t worry, she doesn’t bite. Hard. No teeth, you know?”

“Um… what?” Ryl was stunned before having the child placed in their arms, the Earthling helping to make sure they were positioned right. “Um… okay...” They didn’t know how to work with this, having actually never really fed a baby, let alone hold one after such a short amount of time after its birth, but there they were, holding Katie and feeding her the bottle. “How’d you know she was hungry?”

“Her cries are just like Matt’s; they take different sounds to convey what’s wrong.” Colleen explained, getting a pouch of water and sipping on it. “She likes you.”

“Does she?” The agent didn’t know how Coleen could tell. Well, they took her word for it for the most part, knowing that Colleen had experience with children. Maybe a mother just knew how their children felt, no matter how young they were.

“It’s amazing.” Ryl commented. “For all five paladins to be born to one planet… I had been told legends of the previous paladins being from different species.”

“Perhaps destiny wanted to ensure they would be safe, so they were all born together.” Colleen suggested.

“Possibly.” Ryl nodded. They then turned their attention to Sam when he entered the room. “All is well, commander?”

“Indeed they are.” Sam nodded. “And in a few days, this little one is going to meet her big brother and fellow paladins.” He went over, leaning in to gently tickle his daughter when she finished drinking her meal. She happily cooed and tried to grab for his hand. He smiled when Ryl passed the baby to him, letting the proud father hold her. “Such a sweet little one; sometimes it’s hard to believe how much of a destiny she has ahead of her.”

-+-+-+-

Kolivan personally went on the mission himself to retrieve the Holt family and safely escort them and their newborn daughter to Earth. When he arrived, though, he stared in shock. The base was in ruin, several parts punctured and broken into.

The Gaia Space Station had been attacked.

“Spread out! Check for survivors!” he ordered his team. And they did. He activated his mask and left his ship, going out to examine the station. He looked around, stopping at the occasional sight of bodies. Some had been shot, some simply died. _The loss of breathable air_ _and exposed to an environment so few species could survive..._ he thought, using the thrusters on his armor to move him through.

 **“Kolivan,”** came the voice of Antok, Kolivan’s second in command, **“I found a data chip; it looked like someone was trying to send out an SOS, but it was stopped before the transmission could be sent out.”**

“Extract the data; it may be able to shed some light on what happened here.” Kolivan ordered. He then went through, finding a room that was used as a nursery, the door open and the lights flickered. He went inside and looked at the empty crib. While the base had not been originally designed for raising children, especially babies, they acted quickly and got things set up when Colleen first reported she was pregnant and that she would continue on her mission.

“Sir?” Kolivan didn’t look when he heard Antok’s voice again, this time nearby; the other must have finished getting the data and went to look for the leader. “The others haven’t found any survivors; and several members of the crew, including three of our own, are unaccounted for.”

“Katie?”

“No sign of her.” Antok reported. “Zuvriak examined the points of attack… it was an empire battleship.”

“Send word to the other Blades.” Kolivan ordered. “We need to find the ship and stop it; Katie may be on board.”

“Yes, sir.” Antok was out of the room in an instant, heading back to their own ship to send the message about the missing paladin.

Kolivan remained a moment longer, staring at that empty crib. While a part of him was thankful that Katie was possibly still alive, he worried. The enemy would know the mark on her shoulder and what it meant. Not only that, they had the lion she would one day fly.

Kolivan returned to his ship, letting another fly it back after they performed a thorough check and sent the necessary messages. When he returned to Earth, he only knelt down and hugged onto Matt, only able to apologize. He couldn’t protect those on the station. He couldn’t protect Matt’s family. And he certainly couldn’t protect Katie.

A daughter. A sister. A paladin.

A baby.

Helpless. Innocent. In need of care and love. He couldn’t protect her.

“I won’t give up. I assure you, the Blade of Marmora will do everything in their power to find and protect her…” he promised. He had hoped that his agents would locate Pidge and secure her, keep her safe, but he also worried that they would not reach her before she would be taken to Zarkon, the emperor of much of the known universe. A conqueror. A tyrant. However one called him, he was still cruel.

“These the names of the ones we could confirm as deceased.” Antok handed over the report to Kolivan. He looked down to see Matt on Kolivan’s lap, the young boy having cried himself to sleep, his face squished against the Marmora leader’s chest.

“Sam and Colleen aren’t on the list.” Kolivan whispered softly, putting his free hand on Matt’s head. “But without further confirmation...”

“What will happen to the boy?” Antok inquired. “Will the Garrison put him in foster care?” Kolivan shook his head; knowing about the Blade of Marmora and aliens, it wouldn’t be wise to just place him with any other family. “I can ask Chief and Krolia if they are willing to take him in; they already have Keith to raise, but...”

“I’ve already put in a request.” Kolivan stated. “Due to my connection to the family, they’ve approved of me being his guardian.”

Even with the mask, Kolivan could tell that Antok was curiously staring at him, wondering if that was such a good idea. But was it? Even the leader didn’t know, but someone had to care for Matt and Kolivan felt it was best if he did it. Perhaps it was the guilt in him, the guilt that he couldn’t protect the rest of the Holt family. Perhaps it was because he did adore the boy and had experience in working with him. Either way, he took in Matt; at least he was one constant the boy didn’t have to worry about losing.

“Is he aware of the situation?” Antok finally asked, deciding not to question the leader’s ability and reason for raising the Earthling child. “Does he understand what is happening?”

“He does for the most part.” Kolivan responded. “It’s still sinking in, but...” He shook his head and returned the file to Antok; he put both arms around the boy, hugging him. “I’ll do what I can for him, sir.”

“Then I suggest getting him to bed.” Antok suggested. “You should rest, too.”

Kolivan nodded. “I will take your advice.” he responded as he got up, Matt in his arms. “Good night, Antok.”

“Good night, sir.” Antok saw Kolivan out before sighing. He checked the name list again. So many were gone, either dead… or soon to be dead. He knew the only one who would be mostly spared would be Katie. Even then, he was aware that if they could not retrieve her, she would be raised in a life to be a tool for Zarkon’s use. “She would still be alive… but that life would not be any better than that of a prisoner.” he mumbled to himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to Raising Paladins, an AU some from Tumblr may know about and have possibly been wanting. While art may not always synchronize with my writing, I'm still going to upload images with chapters when available. Also, while I have some written already, this story is still being worked on and uploaded along the way, so hopefully that will go well.   
> Well, I do hope you guys enjoy it. And until next time!


	2. Pidge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Blade of Marmora agent hidden in Zarkon's ranks hopes to help young Katie Holt, but things do not always happen just because someone hopes for it.

A day and a half before Kolivan was due to arrive, the Gaia Space Station was attacked. A battleship came through, shooting at some sections and infiltrating in others. One soldier on board was, in fact, not truly a soldier. He was a Blade of Marmora agent who had infiltrated the empire to steal data and send back to the rebels; Haxus. He was hoping to help others, but being kept at _his_ commander’s side, he couldn’t get away to try and help the station’s crew escape the madness. The mayhem.

Haxus stopped by a room. Crying. But it wasn’t from an adult. He looked in to see a newborn lying there, crying out for something. Attention? Food? Fear? It wasn’t that the room wasn’t safe, the moment the attack started, it became properly sealed.

Then he saw the infant’s arm as she waved them up at the ceiling.

Sendak, the Galran commander Haxus was pretending to serve under, spoke into the comm, getting that section of the base sealed off further and stabilized. “Sir?” Haxus inquired.

“You saw it, too, didn’t you?” Sendak inquired. Once everything in that sector of the base was stabilized, he entered the room, stepping toward the crib. He carefully took the child’s hand to get her to stop flailing, surprised that she stopped crying all together. “As I thought, a paladin mark.”

“On a baby?” Haxus inquired. He swore his heart fell to his stomach, a weight settling there as the realization of the upcoming dread was making itself known.

“It will grow.” Sendak smirked. “Emperor Zarkon would be most pleased.”

Haxus couldn’t speak out, not without being questioned and detained himself; if he did that, then he couldn’t assure that the baby would be fine. He then picked her up carefully, settling her in his arms. She was so tiny. Sure, the species was new to them, but he couldn’t help but feel that this creature hadn’t been born that long ago. And then she cooed up at him, making jovial burbling noises.

Sendak gave the orders to others so they could get the baby transferred to their ship. That was when Colleen was being detained and taken aboard as a prisoner.

“Katie!” Colleen cried out. “Let go of my daughter, you sick son of a-” Colleen stopped her shouting, but she didn’t lessen her glare when she found Sendak’s prosthetic arm outstretched, the claws gripping around her upper body, threatening to crush her.

“Looks like you know when to keep your mouth shut; not that the kit would understand, it would almost be a shame to crush you in front of her.” Sendak smirked.

“Please… don’t harm anyone else.” Sam pleaded. “Especially Katie; she’s just a baby.”

“I have no intention of harming her.” Sendak looked to where Haxus was, Katie still in his arms. “She will be of use to Zarkon.” He then gave the command for the others to be taken to the prison cells, the Galran rebels to be taken elsewhere to make sure they didn’t escape. Afterwards, they set out to head for Central Command, the massive ship where Zarkon, lord of the known universe, resided.

During the travel, Haxus wanted to take Katie to her parents, let them protect her. He wanted to set them free and get them to an escape pod. At the least, he wanted to help the captured Blades and get them out along with the newborn paladin.

But he couldn’t.

He knew if he acted, he would be found out. He would face punishment and be unable to protect and help the infant. For now, he knew he had to lay low and sooth the child who had started to cry.

“She’s hungry and if her species is anything like many others we find, ourselves included, then she’ll need her mother.” Haxus informed the commander.

“The others saw to that already; the primitives had supplies on board for the baby, including bottles with food in them for her.” Sendak explained. “They’re in the galley.”

Haxus scowled. He had hoped to see the parents, let at least the mother hold her baby again, find out what he could and reassure them, maybe even come up with a plan. But that wasn’t the case. Instead, he complied and went to get a bottle, Katie taking to it quickly and suckling from it.

“It’s okay,” he whispered to her, knowing she wouldn’t understand him but still hoping his tone would help her, “I’ll do what I can to protect you.”

Thanks to the ship’s ability to use hyper jumps, it only took a matter of days for them to reach Central Command. Haxus tried to work out different plans to help the others, but they all came across the same problem. _How do I do this without giving myself away or getting caught?_ It was not feasible and it became too late.

Haxus found himself before Zarkon, the Galran emperor who has had the longest reign of any emperor or empress who had come before him. He did his best to pay attention and listen, hearing of the report Sendak gave of finding the little paladin. All the while, Haxus kept holding onto Katie, letting her sleep peacefully in his arms.

“A paladin this young,” the high priestess and Zarkon’s loyal adviser, Haggar, spoke up, her raspy voice silencing everyone in the room of their murmuring, “would perhaps prove beneficial. The baby could easily be raised to properly serve the empire, to be loyal to you, my emperor.”

“Indeed, that is a very good point to realize.” Zarkon commented. He then motioned for a medical officer on standby to take the child. “Have her taken to the Dayaks, they will ensure she will be most loyal and skilled.”

The medical officer gently picked Katie up out of Haxus’ arms. However, the moment she lost any physical contact with him, she started screeching, but it was unlike any cry those of Sendak’s ship had heard for the past few days. This scream was as if she was physically being harmed, even if the medic was so careful and kind in their action. Without any verbal or physical cues given, the medic quickly passed Katie back over to Haxus, the agent carefully holding onto her and comforting her.

Her crying ceased and she settled into a gentle cooing noise. Haxus was not the only one staring in shock, the others noticing that Katie was resistant to let anyone else have her in their grasp. _Maybe this is her connection to her lion already developing? She probably senses that it’s here._ The agent thought to himself. _Or maybe she senses that I’m safe and mean her no harm?_ He really didn’t have the answers, but he hoped that this could at least grant him more time with the newborn and help her. Perhaps to escape, but if all else failed, he could at least guide her properly.

Of all the shocked looks, there was one that was not shocked. Zarkon. He watched the newborn paladin studiously, observing how she responded in being taken from and returned to Haxus. “Lieutenant Haxus, correct?”

“Yes, sire.” Haxus responded, keeping up the image of being a loyal soldier.

“This paladin is making it known that she wishes to remain with you. In that case, I will continue having you serve under Commander Sendak; with his help, you two will raise her to be loyal to the empire.” Zarkon responded. “Your new destination will be to the Javeeno star system, but do not think that something on the outskirts is a punishment, far from it. There, you will be able to ensure her safety but also help her learn as she grows.” The emperor rose to his feet, leaving the throne as he calmly walked over to where Haxus and Sendak stood. “This is a grand opportunity to you both; raise her as you have been trained. She will be loyal to Galra and fight in their name as a paladin of Voltron.” He gently reached over, brushing a finger against the mark on Katie’s arm.

“It is a great honour.” Sendak responded, dipping his head respectfully. “We will not let you down.”

“I should hope not.” Zarkon responded. “This child… she is so small… her name will be Pidge.” A fitting name. To the Galra, it meant _small but powerful_. “In addition, to prepare her one day to fight at my side, she will need to learn to fly the green lion one day. I will have that placed in your possession as well; when she is old enough, she will learn.” He then turned away, returning to his throne to sit. “Remain here for a few quintants; let the medical team see if she will be able to consume nutrition we give to our own kits in place of their mothers.”

“Of course, my emperor.” Sendak nodded before being dismissed, he and Haxus leaving.

As Haxus left, he looked at another Galra. Another hidden agent. Their eyes momentarily met and they both knew that someone had to inform the other Blades. Then he walked out, Katie… Pidge in his arms, snuggled in close and making small noises that he hoped were signs of being content.

In their short stay at Central Command, Haxus was surprised at some of the other commanders, a good handful fussing over Pidge and finding her adorable. Well, kits weren’t raised at Zarkon’s ship; kits were raised on secure bases so that they would be safe from rebel attacks. At much as Zarkon insisted that weakness was an infection and should be cut away, he still knew and understood the importance of the young of his soldiers and citizens being protected and properly raised; most at that ship had not been in contact with any sort of baby in a long time, and with Pidge being special, they were exceptionally doting, even making sure she had cute outfits that made her look like a fluffy Galran kit.

“So,” Haxus spoke up as he fed Pidge a bottle, “what will become of her parents? And the others?”

Sendak eyed his lieutenant, stopping midway from investigating one of the fluffy purple outfits given to them. “What does it matter?” Haxus didn’t respond. “The primitives will be dealt with accordingly; some will be sent to work camps to utilize their surprising intelligence, others to the arena to fight. And those foolish traitors will be properly disposed of after the druids find out what they know and if there are others.” Sendak finally responded with a huff.

Haxus hoped that wouldn’t be the case. If the Blade of Marmora was found out, then their efforts would be lost completely. He then looked up when the commander approached. They would be working together longer and working with Sendak would definitely make it hard getting Pidge to a Marmora base. Honestly, he could only really hope the loyal Galra would slip up at some point or Haxus could manage to protect and properly raise Pidge.

“Are you wishing to hold her?” Haxus inquired. “If so, remove your armor; she won’t be comfortable with it.”

“How would you know what a kit would feel?” Sendak scrunched up his face in confusion. “Especially one of this strange species?”

“I contacted Commander Bogh, hoping what he knew about raising kits could apply to her.” Haxus responded. If he were being honest, he didn’t care if Sendak really wanted to hold Pidge or not; he could live with the commander just ignoring her for the most part. However, a part of his mind hoped for an attachment to her; perhaps, he felt, if Sendak did get attached, he could convince him to help him keep the newborn safe and away from Zarkon; that, though, was just a simple hope for the little paladin’s sake.

Sendak grumbled a bit and removed the armor from his upper half. He moved to take Pidge, but Haxus took control instead, repositioning the commander’s arm just right before nestling Pidge into the soft, mauve fur of his biological arm. Pidge cooed curiously, looking up in awe.

Then she made a giggle-like burbling noise, her feet kicking playfully before she managed to snuggle in more. She stuck her thumb in her mouth and watched up at Sendak with seemingly large, brown eyes. “Her head needs to be properly supported without hurting the neck, so try not to jostle her too much.”

“She’s so… tiny.” Sendak admitted, carefully bringing his mechanical, clawed hand closer and softly poking the newborn.

“I’ve found that babies of most species are.”

“She’s so fragile.”

“Babies typically are.”

“I’ll crush anyone who dares to harm her.” Haxus looked over at Sendak’s sudden remark. Protective fatherly behaviour already? The commander looked away. “Because… because she’s special to the empire.”

“Right. Well, as long as she’s safe.” Haxus sighed. He honestly hoped Pidge would be safe. But a feeling of dread had long since settled in his gut, telling him to be careful.


	3. To Raise the Paladins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Though separated, those of the Blade of Marmora do their best to raise the paladins.

**Location:** Earth

**Time:** three weeks after the destruction of the Gaia Space Station

Kolivan sat on the sofa, overlooking some data. It had been a few weeks since Katie’s disappearance and the attack on the Gaia Space Station. He waited for news to come back on her whereabouts as well as the remainder of the crew. In front of him at the coffee table, Matt was sitting with Shiro and the youngest, not including Katie, paladin in the group, Lance. The second youngest, a boy nicknamed _Hunk_ , was outside playing with Krolia’s son and the next youngest paladin, Keith, the two watched over by Krolia and Chief. As the young children, one still considered a baby (though a few Blades had debated on whether or not Lance was a baby still or a toddler yet) sat there, the older two were prompting Lance to put coloured and shaped blocks into the proper holes of a board.

Kolivan smiled at them. As much as he wished he could save Katie, as much as he wished he could find her, they had not yet received any news. Patience. They had to be patient. But time was of the essence and Kolivan did not want their patience to bring great harm.

“Kolivan, sir?” Antok looked into the room. With his tail, he motioned for the Marmora leader to join him.

“Uncle Kolivan?” Shiro asked, curiosity in his gray eyes. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m sure it’s nothing, Shiro; can you keep an eye on Lance for me?” Kolivan inquired, turning off his datapad. “I’ll just be outside the room.”

“I can help!” Matt assured, hand up in the air to make himself more noticeable.

“Then you do your best in helping.” Kolivan smiled and ruffled Matt’s hair, making him giggle; yes, Matt was still upset about his family going missing, but he was doing his best. As was Kolivan. Nodding, the leader straightened up and left the room, closing the door behind him. “Any word, Antok?”

“We still have no word on Colleen or Sam’s whereabouts exactly; the crew from the station that survived were separated.” Antok reported. “As for our agents that were captured, all three have met their demise.”

“Krylkav. Zodra. Ryl.” Kolivan knew their names. Knew their faces. “Ryl has family in the Blade, don’t they? Their brother is Dryk.”

“Yes, sir.” Antok nodded. “The other two have no kin within our group, but Ryl… I have not informed Dryk yet.” He sighed. “He and his wife are still undercover; even if we could contact them about Ryl’s death, I did not feel it would be good to give them this news yet. They had a kit about a month ago, and the stress could make it hard to raise their kit.”

“They know the general risk we all face… holding off on telling them will be best.” Kolivan confirmed. A kit. It wasn’t uncommon for undercover agents to have children while on missions, whether they were with their mate, another Blade they sought comfort and at least physical attraction with, or they found themselves either in love or at least attracted to someone of the empire. In fact, it was perfectly normal and when they could, they would try to get their kits to Marmora bases where they would be safe. Dryk and his wife were both agents, infiltrating the empire and pretending to be a part of it, and it did not surprise him one bit that they had a child while on their mission.

“Their kit… is probably a week or two older than Katie, huh?” Kolivan mumbled.

“Approximately, yes.” Antok nodded. “And about Katie… we did get news on her.” This caused Kolivan to raise his head so quickly, the gasses within the joints in his neck popped rather loudly and suddenly. “There is good news and… not fully good news.” Antok double checked the data before speaking again. “She is no longer at Zarkon’s command center and on a different ship to be raised. The bad news is our agents don’t know how to get her off that ship and secured at a base; worse yet, it’s Sendak’s ship.”

“That’s definitely not good...” Kolivan admitted.

“But her primary care has been entrusted to Haxus.” Antok continued. “He hasn’t been able to make contact with us, this is information Thace has sent, but with Haxus there, he should be able to at least help raise Katie, nudge her in the right direction.”

Kolivan leaned against the wall, a sigh escaping him. It hadn’t been too long since Katie’s disappearance and it truly had him worried. Yes, he was still worried, one way or another the empire was keeping its eye on the youngest paladin. The risk of her still being a tool for Zarkon was still there. But she was with another Blade, so there was still some hope.

“Inform me immediately of any further information on Katie, especially if Haxus sends us anything.” he finally said.

“Yes, sir.” Antok nodded. He then looked down at the sound of playful squealing. First Keith ran through, reaching Kolivan’s legs and hugging them. Then came Hunk, still very young and wobbly on his legs. It was no surprise when he tripped and fell near Antok. “C’mon, kit, you’re fine.” he assured the boy when he started sniffling. He brushed his tail along Hunk’s face, making him giggle and prompting him to stand back up, though he toddled over and hugged Antok instead. “Very well.” Antok snorted a bit and put his datapad away before picking Hunk up; the boy really seemed most fond of him; it was probably because of the tail.

“I’m going back in to the others.” Kolivan picked Keith up, holding the half-Galra, though he looked every bit human, in his arms. “If anything else comes up, please inform me.”

“Of course, sir.” Antok nodded before looking to Hunk. “Did you wish to stay with me or go with Kolivan?”

Hunk looked to Kolivan’s outstretched arm before reaching out. “Kowa! Kowa!” he sounded out, squealing with joy when Kolivan held him, too.

“I’ll get to work.” Antok nodded and left, dipping his head to Chief and Krolia as he passed them.

“So… any good news?” Krolia inquired, joining the leader and opening the door for him.

“Some; while we cannot retrieve her at the moment, Katie is on another ship and being looked after by another agent.” he said, walking in and sitting on the couch, letting Keith and Hunk sit with him, though the former climbed down and went to the table to play with the toys there. “She’s still at risk, but she is safer than she could be.”

“She?” Matt asked. “You mean my sister?” He looked back when Chief knelt beside him, ruffling his hair. “Can we get her?”

“One day, kiddo, we’ll get yer sister.” Chief assured. “Just gotta be patient.”

Matt scowled. “I dun like patience...”

“Still gotta.” Shiro reminded. “Patience yields focus! Right, Uncle Kolivan?” Kolivan nodded slowly. He honestly hoped with some patience and dedication, they could save Katie, unite her with the other paladins and raise them together.

-+-+-+-

**Base** : Commander Sendak’s ship

**Location** : Javeeno star system

**Time** : one year since Katie Holt’s abduction

It had almost been an entire year since Pidge had been taken in by the empire, raised by Haxus and Sendak. And more than any child, according to Commander Bogh when Haxus would ask him for advice, Pidge was truly an adventurous sort, always running around the ship and exploring her surroundings, often times finding herself in precarious situations and narrowly dodging danger. Even though she wasn’t Galra and the DNA code to ship would not allow her into many sections, which was a very good idea, she still found her way through to some rooms and still continued to explore.

_“The green lion embodies a sense of curiosity and an adventurous spirit. Though I did not know the previous paladin when she was a child, she did show to be easily roused by the love of exploring something new and learning about it in her adulthood.”_ Those were the words that Zarkon had told them, showing that this desire to explore as well as grab hold of and dismantle drones could be influenced by the fact that Pidge was the green paladin.

From the moment she could crawl, Pidge was hard to keep an eye on; walking only made it trickier to watch out for her. But they managed, especially Haxus. To be honest, he found it rather amusing that Pidge would always wander off. Even more, she was always drawn to the green lion, the mechanical beast being kept locked away for the time being.

Haxus was not surprised one bit when he found Pidge trying to get into a door, tapping it with her hands and trying to reach up to the control panel. Even if she was tall enough to activate it, he was thankful it wouldn’t work for her. Though he truly saw no harm in her seeing the green lion, which waited on the other side, part of him even hoped it would let her in and take her away, but if that would happen, he would get into trouble and perhaps even found out to be a spy in the ranks of the Galran empire.

Things were not easy.

In the end, though, he found her at that door once more and picked her up. “One day, my little one, you’ll go in there and find your destiny in there.” he assured her, Pidge making the typical baby babble as she reached for the door. Haxus smiled fondly at the child he held.

In all honesty, Haxus truly wanted to get Pidge out of there. He wanted to get her to safety and away from the empire. That was proving to be difficult, though; despite being on the outskirts, there was still great protection over the paladin, making sure she was secure in the empire. At least the backup plan of trying to raise her and keep her on the right path was still there and he would be damned if he didn’t try his best.

Raising Pidge was another factor. Haxus knew his duty was to look after her, but he found himself doing more than that. He felt like a parent taking care of their young, special, and overall adventurous daughter. He hoped Sendak would be the one getting attached, which the commander, to some degree despite denying it, was, but he found himself attached and just always looking after every minute detail about the daughter he practically adopted.

Haxus still worried about Pidge’s parents, no longer knowing of their whereabouts. Were they dead, killed in the arena in a bloody massacre by some bloodthirsty foe? Perhaps they were sent to a work camp, either doing physical labour to mine necessary ore or even held prisoner, their creativity and surprising intelligence being exploited? He didn’t know the answers and he couldn’t get in contact with any Blades to ask for information or give data to.

“Ba? Ba ba bu.” Pidge burbled at Haxus, reaching up for his face, the expression stern in his thought.

“Hmm?” Haxus offered a smile. “No, it’s no worries, little one.” He pressed his nose to hers, making the baby paladin giggle. “Now then, I’ve got a few things to go over before we stop to resupply, so why not stick with me, hmm?” Pidge babbled again, her sounds not seeming to form coherent words; hopefully Bogh was right that she could start getting some words in any day.

“But don’t you fret.” Haxus assured. “One day you’ll go in there and you’ll meet the green lion. Hopefully that will help you, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The comic set was one inspired by Rueitae's mention back on Tumblr. I like showing Pidge's curiosity as a child in any AU.


	4. A Paladin in the Empire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge is given her first mission and it is both exciting and unnerving.

**Base** : Commander Sendak’s ship

**Location** : Javeeno star system

**Time** : fifteen years since Katie Holt’s abduction

Pidge sat in her room, snuggled up against a large Yupper plush toy, its fabric dingy, a few patches and several added stitches holding the old toy together. As she sat in the room that she often cursed, because why did the Galra need the purple lighting so much, she stared at a holographic screen, seeing two Galra as young as she was.

Drek and Kullo.

Even the Galra had friends and it was supported that she made friends her own age, helping to anchor her to the Galran empire and keep her loyal. However, Sendak often questioned why Pidge would pick those two of all the others she met at training camp. Pidge, though, liked them. They were unique and different from most their age, fun and even caring.

Especially when she fell ill several months back.

For years, Pidge had gone to the high priestess, Haggar. There, she would get various treatments and after each session, she would just feel a little ill, a little… strange. She couldn’t fully explain it other than the occasional sensation of being on fire and the pounding in her head. This last one, though, the one that put a stark white streak in her hair, was particularly bad. However, when her friends visited, it made her happy and even more special than the constant reminder that she was a paladin and would one day fight alongside Zarkon.

**“And then the commander here slipped on a huge glob of food-goop.”** Drek, a blue coloured, male coded Galra commented, laughing. The three were hardly fifteen years old, deca-phoebs as much of the universe would say, but they were all cadets. Drek and Kullo were training at a base while Pidge continued her training on board Sendak’s ship. **“I bet if Commander Sendak slipped-”**

“It’d be stuck in all that fur he has if he slipped and fell.” Pidge commented, chuckling some.

**“Ugh! And that stuff is so hard to wash out!”** Kullo, a purple, fur covered Galra, complained, messing with his ears some. **“I can only imagine what it’s doing to our stomachs.”**

“Yours and mine, maybe, but Drek’s? I’m sure he can stomach anything.” Pidge quipped, smirking at the rude yet playful gesture Drek showed. She then grumbled, holding her head. Those damned headaches.

**“Pidge?”** Kullo asked, concern in his tone. **“Pidge, are you okay?”**

**“It’s those headaches again, right?”** Drek added.

“Don’t worry, it’s already passing.” Pidge assured.

**“I don’t like them… they keep getting worse after you see the druids...”** Drek’s ears went down a bit. **“Haven’t you tried talking to your dad about them? Or Commander Sendak?”**

“I don’t want to bother Pa… pa...” Pidge clutched her head, a high pitched ringing sounding in her ears. She didn’t register Drek or Kullo’s comments of concern, even calling her name, at first, but when it subsided, she shook her head. “It’s nothing… it’s already passed.” she stated. “There’s no need to bother even Lieutenant Haxus about them.” Drek and Kullo gave each other looks of concern; they knew something was wrong.

**“Pidge, Emperor Zarkon** **contacted us and** **expects your presence on the bridge.”** came Haxus’ voice over the PA system of the ship.

“That’s my cue to go; talk to you another time, boys.” Pidge told the duo.

**“Yeah, just… take care of yourself, okay?”** Drek asked. **“I’m concerned about those headaches...”**

**“We both are.”** Kullo added.

“I’m a lot tougher than I look, you both know that.” Pidge smirked a bit. “Signing off.” The two confirmed before she cut the communication. “Stupid headache...” she grumbled. “But I need to be strong.” Shaking her head, she got up and grabbed her cadet uniform, sprinting off as she put it on and made her way to the bridge. There, she saw a communication link already established, the emperor visible.

“Apologies for my tardiness, my emperor.” Pidge knelt down.

**“No need to apologize; you’re still young and learning.”** Zarkon reminded. **“I was informing Sendak that the Princess of Altea was hiding out in that sector.”**

“Princess?” Pidge inquired, lifting her head.

**“Alfor’s daughter.”** Zarkon informed. **“She is the key to getting the remaining lions, including the black lion. I know you are still young and still in the beginning stages of learning to work with your lion, but I believe now is the time for your mission.”** Pidge nodded, an eager look etched into her face. **“I want you to infiltrate the group, ensure the lions are gathered, and have them returned to me. However, Alfor may have been a fool, but he was intelligent; he would have kept the black lion locked away. Which means the red lion will need to be captured by the princess.”**

Pidge already played the moves out in her mind, planning ahead. “Pardon my interruption, Emperor Zarkon,” she spoke up, “but perhaps if I assist them in taking the red lion from Commander Sendak and practically hand over the green lion, I could earn their trust, thus making Voltron easy to nab.”

**“To be expected of you, Pidge.”** Zarkon praised, proud of her quick thinking. **“I look forward to the results.”**

“Vrepit Sa.” Pidge nodded before the communication was cut and she stood up. “Commander,” she looked to Sendak, “do you know where exactly we’re heading?”

“Thanks to our readings, I do; prepare to depart and head the planet Arus; we will be following shortly behind to give enough time to make sure they have the other lions.” Sendak responded. “And I suggest a prisoner outfit; let them pity you and take you in; it will put their guards down.”

“Yes, sir.” Pidge nodded and took off, doing as instructed. As she put on the prisoner uniform in her room, she stopped to look herself over, her mind wandering to the past.

When Pidge was little, perhaps five or six, Sendak took her to the arena for the first time, as per invite of Zarkon. It was the first time she actually had seen prisoners and what they wore. She saw them be sent out to fight, either other Galra lusting for blood or monstrous aliens forced to fight. She remembered how terrified she was when she first saw that scene and how she ran off crying. Even now, it disturbed her. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she wondered if she would had wound up there, too, had she not been a paladin.

In the end, seeing herself in the prisoner garb disturbed her.

“It’s just a disguise… just a disguise...” she mumbled to herself. She then looked to her Yupper plush. She would be back, she knew that. But something in her gut told her to take the toy with her, to never leave it behind. So she did. “C’mon, we’re going on a mission.” she childishly told the toy.

“Pidge?” Pidge turned to see Haxus as he entered her room.

“Papa...” Pidge’s eyes were soft before she grunted, a headache coming on. “Sorry… I… I don’t have time to linger; I’ve got a job to do.”

“Just be careful out there, okay?” Haxus requested.

“I will.” Pidge nodded. “I’ll be back before you know it, Lieutenant.” She did the Galran salute. “Vrepit Sa.” And then she was off, heading to the green lion.

“Vrepit Sa...” Haxus whispered, his voice distant. He didn’t want Pidge to do this, especially when he couldn’t get a message out yet to warn the Blade of Marmora of the plan. If they were near enough to where the Altean princess was, they could have helped, right? But not without information. “Dammit...”

Pidge went to the hanger where the green lion rested. There, Sendak met her and gave her a vial of medicine. “It will weaken you momentarily, making it easier for the others to put their guards down and assist you. It’ll wear off soon, though; we should arrive about two, maybe three vargas after you do. Take the medicine before you enter the planet’s atmosphere; it should act quickly.”

“Okay.” Pidge nodded.

“And are you really dragging that thing along with you? This mission shouldn’t last more than a quintant.” Sendak turned his nose up at the disheveled toy. “You’re a paladin and a proud warrior of the Galran Empire...”

“Well I like it.” Pidge grumbled.

Sendak snarled. “Don’t forget your mission.”

“I won’t.” She then nodded and went up to the lion, entering it through its metallic maw. She stopped at the hold first, putting her Yupper on the bed in there and with the other stuffed toys she had; Sendak often disapproved, but she liked sleeping in the green lion when she could. There was something about the mechanical creature that put her at ease. She then went to the cockpit, sitting down.

Pidge looked to her hands for a moment, seeing them shake. Nervous. She couldn’t understand why she would be feeling like that. Shaking her head, she sighed. “It’s okay, Pidge, you can do this. This is what you’ve been training for.” she told herself. With a determined nod, she readied the green lion for departure, leaving Sendak’s ship.

Leaving the place she called home for her first actual mission.

Despite her determination to succeed, Pidge was a little concerned. She had no idea what she was going to face on her mission, who she would really meet. However, she was raised the Galran way. Victory. Or death. Though, to be honest, she would much rather avoid the death part of a situation; even when on simulated missions at training camp, she always made plans and altered them on the go to ensure everyone on her mission’s team would survive. Sure, she was acting alone at the moment, her point was that she had no intention of dying. She had no intention on failing.

“I’m nearing Arus.” Pidge reported, though it seemed mainly to herself since she had not set up a comm link between the lion and Sendak’s ship. She then procured the vial of medicine. “Hopefully this doesn’t screw me over… I think everyone forgets I’m not Galran...” she muttered bitterly. She then opened it up and gulped down the substance.

Pidge couldn’t describe the taste and she definitely didn’t want to describe the texture, but have it be known, she didn’t like either and she especially didn’t like how dizzy it made her feel. Even the headache felt worse as the ringing in her ears was almost deafening. Before she knew it, she had entered the planet’s atmosphere and crashed, surprisingly not far from what looked like some sort of castle.

She shook her head, trying to get rid of some of the disorientation that took over her. Standing up, though, she realized that wasn’t working and the medicine really did not agree with her. “I sure hope… the commander knew what he was giving me...” she muttered as she staggered off, making her way out of the green lion. She looked ahead, hearing something… someone call out to her. She couldn’t understand them, though, the ringing in her ears getting worse and drowning them out for the most part.

Then she collapsed. Honestly, if this was what Sendak meant by _weakening her momentarily_ , then she really hoped he tried that damned medicine himself before giving her a dose, just to see how it felt. Or perhaps this reaction was because she wasn’t the same as those she worked alongside. Either way, it sucked.

And worse yet, she swore she was hallucinating. She saw something that looked like it could be the same species as her as she slowly lost consciousness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact! The only reason she actually has that Yupper plush is because when I drew the picture, it just felt so empty and I thought she needed a toy. The idea of it being large and floppy comes from me having a plush St. Bernard growing up that I loved, though mine lacked the patches and extra stitching that Pidge's Yupper has on it.  
> Also! As a heads up, we briefly meet Drek and Kullo, Pidge's friends. They will show up again later in the story, so yes! This story does have OCs (it should be mentioned in the tags).  
> Well! I hope you guys enjoyed! And look forward to the next chapter!


	5. Welcome to Arus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to Arus, where an Altean princess had one heck of a beauty rest. All the while, Pidge has a mission to prepare.

When Princess Allura of Altea woke up, she was surprised to have found that she had been kept in stasis for ten thousand years, give or take. More than that, she was stunned to find the next generation of paladins in her castle. Or rather, most of them. Four out of five paladins wasn’t too bad, but they still had to get the other lions and find the fifth paladin.

There was a good reason why four paladins plus Matt were on Arus rather than Earth where they were supposed to be training. It all started with a Galran cruiser nearing their home planet, looking for a Voltron lion. The blue one was on Earth, the Blade of Marmora doing their best to keep it hidden so that the enemy would not find it. However, it gave of an elemental signature that the enemy found that when near enough, they could actually track it.

They had gotten near enough.

Without authorization from Kolivan, who, more or less, was in charge of the group he still considered children, though two of them were, in the eyes of humans, still minors while the other three were legally adults, they went to investigate, going to the blue lion. And the blue lion led them to a wormhole which spat them out clear across in another solar system.

Another galaxy, really.

They had found themselves on Arus where they entered what they thought was a castle, or at least it was the best way to describe it. That was where they found Allura, an alien princess, and Coran, her adviser. Despite being aliens to the group, though Matt insisted they themselves were the aliens since they were no longer on Earth, they looked so similar to humans; the biggest difference were the elvish looking ears and bright, sickle shaped markings under their eyes.

“So you don’t know where the fifth paladin is?” Allura inquired, having already located the yellow lion, sending Lance, who piloted the blue lion, and Hunk, who was destined to fly the yellow one, to retrieve it. “But you know who she is?”

“My sister, Katie… but… she went missing a long time ago.” Matt admitted. “All we know is that she was taken… but that there’s a Blade with her to help raise her… we don’t know much more than that.” Indeed they didn’t. Haxus didn’t have many opportunities to send data to the other Blades, so he could not warn any of them that Pidge was showing to be loyal to the empire despite his efforts.

“And the Blade is...” Allura was still a little lost; it had been ten thousand years and so much had changed.

“The Blade of Marmora.” Keith explained. “I understand that you’ve faced hardships from the Galra, but the Blade are also Galra, though they’re nothing like Zarkon.” He sighed. “They’re rebels, working hard to bring down the empire. Though it’s taking a while, they’re diligent and doing their best.”

Allura nodded. Galra? The same race that started this war? But she honestly hoped the paladins were right about them being rebels and an ally. She knew they needed all the allies they could get; she couldn’t be picky. After all, if she was picky, she would have denied most, perhaps even all, of the paladins; they were all so very young. Shiro, at twenty five, was the oldest. And that wasn’t twenty five centuries or even decades. Twenty five years.

The paladins of Voltron were practically babies. And Allura didn’t feel it right to send them to war. However, she was relieved to have been informed that they had spent most of their lives training, learning to not only be paladins and fight in a war, but to protect other people in need, work together, and even make sure that they themselves were fine.

“Hmm? Princess, we’ve got an incoming ship!” Coran exclaimed, looking back from the computer system he stood at.

“A ship?” Allura looked concerned. One. It most likely wasn’t Hunk and Lance returning.

“Did the Galra find us already?” Keith inquired. Yes, he was part Galra and the group was practically raised by Galrans, but when typically using _Galra_ to refer to others, he often meant those of the empire.

“It’s… the green lion.” Coran brought the castle’s surveillance system up, showing the image of the green lion entering the atmosphere. “And she’s coming in hot.” He winced when the lion went off screen but he could, in person, hear a crash. “She… crashed...”

“Katie...” Matt whispered, certain that the one at the helm was indeed his sister. He then ran off to check, needing to find out if she really was there. With how she crashed, perhaps she escaped. Perhaps she was in danger. He didn’t know what was wrong or happening, only that he could finally meet his sister and that she may need help. For all he knew, something could have changed and she was no longer being raised; what he never assumed, though, was that she would be there on a mission to take the other lions.

“Matt! Wait up!” Shiro called after him, hoping to get his friend to slow down a bit.

Matt, though, wasn’t slowing down. He kept on running until he was outside and heading for the green lion, thankful that it landed near enough to the castle. Even if it hadn’t, he would keep running for it for as long as he possibly could. He reached where the lion was, collapsed in the ground, having torn up the grass in its path as it crashed and slid across the planet’s surface. He was stunned to see someone stagger out and wearing a prisoner jumper.

Prisoner. This person, who he could tell was an Earthling, wore prisoner clothes.

He had seen such clothes before; Kolivan and the others made sure that Matt and the paladins could recognize different things, especially uniforms. And seeing this, his heart raced more than the running ever made it do. He sped over to the Earthling, calling out his sister’s name.

“Katie?” Matt knelt beside the Earthling that had stumbled out of the green lion. He picked her up some, supporting her weight that he felt was nearly nonexistent. She was so scrawny; he worried that she was unhealthy. He remembered hearing from Kolivan and the others that Zarkon knew that she was a paladin. Did the empire not care? Or perhaps they knew nothing about her species? He didn’t know the answers and he just held her.

“It’s okay, Katie, I’m here.” he assured gently as her eyes drifted closed.

“We should get her back to the castle; Coran and the princess may be able to help her.” Shiro suggested. He moved to take Pidge from Matt, but the elder brother didn’t budge. “Matt, let me carry her there. You can stay close, but we need to get her some help.”

“R-right.” Matt nodded and finally relinquished his hold on her. He watched as Shiro took hold of Pidge, seeing just how small and frail she looked in the trained paladin’s arms. He then stood up and followed, his mind still running in circles as he worried for his sister.

“So you know her?” Allura asked after the others had gotten Pidge to the infirmary and Coran began checking over her health, even taking quick scans of the others so he had something considered _normal_ to compare her to.

“I’m certain she’s my sister...” Matt stated. “I never actually met Katie… she was a few days old when she went missing… so...”

“Well, tests show that you two are in fact related.” Coran declared. “And she seems to have been drugged; it shouldn’t be too long before it wears of-quiznak!” He narrowly dodged an attack as Pidge suddenly shot up and lunged for him. He stared as the girl staggered and fell over.

“Katie!” Matt called out, moving to help her up, but Shiro stopped him. “Shiro, she’s...”

“Just be patient.” Shiro instructed. He then stepped forward slowly. “Katie? Katie, it’s okay, no one here is going to hurt you.” he spoke in a gentle tone. “It’ll be fine. You’re safe.”

Pidge looked to Shiro, confusion on her face. _Katie? Who’s that?_ She asked herself. But then she stopped, noticing something. Two people definitely differed from her, what with their pointed ears, but the three younger boys, all most likely older than her, she deduced, looked so similar to her. This confused her more. She had never once seen or heard of another life form like her self. Curious, she scooted closer to Shiro and gently touched his cheek with one hand, ghosting the fingers of her other hand against her own face.

“Have you never seen another human? An Earthling?” Shiro inquired. He carefully put his hand over Pidge’s, startling her for a moment. “It’s okay, see? We’re the same thing.” He pulled his hand down, keeping Pidge’s cupped in it and getting her to look down. Everything about him, that she could tell, was just like her. Even the strange, white tuft sticking out of his hair.

Pidge knew her mission. She had a job to do. But this? This was so… strange. Yet something in the back of her mind told her this was what she needed in her life. This was where she belonged. “Who… who are you?” she asked. “And why did you call me _Katie_? My name is Pidge.” She let her guard down despite her training. Something about these creatures intrigued her and she just couldn’t let it go.

“Because, it’s the name you were given before you were taken away.” Shiro informed.

Taken? Pidge blinked. What did this being, an Earthling he called himself, mean? She was found by the empire and raised, given a very special opportunity due to her unique circumstance of being a Voltron paladin.

Wasn’t she?

“Princess,” Coran whispered, “Hunk and Lance are back. And… we’ve got another problem.”

“Let’s meet them on the bridge.” Allura stated. She then looked to the other paladins. “Shiro, Matt, you’ll find extra clothes in there for the time being.” She motioned to a panel on the wall, almost hidden seamlessly. “Help get her situated while we go back up; Keith, you come with us.”

“Right.” Keith nodded and left with the two Alteans.

“Let’s get you out of this outfit; you’re not a prisoner anymore.” Shiro suggested, standing up and going to where the other clothes were, finding that the panel hid a storage unit of varying clothes in different sizes.

Pidge stared. Good. They did see her as some sort of prisoner; their guard had been lowered. And in a short amount of time, they should be playing right in her hand to give her the other lions. But… she was still curious. Something in the back of her mind told her to defy Sendak, to stay with and even help the paladins. But then that ringing in her ears tried to drone out the voice that tried to guide her differently.

“Katie?” Matt went to his sister while Shiro looked for something suitable and comfortable for the green paladin to wear. “Are you okay? Does your head hurt?”

“It’s nothing...” Pidge mumbled. “And… just call me _Pidge_. It’s the name I know...”

Matt felt heartbroken. She never knew her name as Katie. And judging by her reaction to Shiro, the curiosity that shone in her eyes, he figured she never met another human. That meant she definitely knew nothing of their parents or the rest of the crew. Despite his sadness, he offered a gentle smile. “Pidge, huh? It sounds kinda cute.” he said.

Pidge slowly nodded before looking to see what outfits Shiro had strewn out. She then noticed something simple, not too different from what she normally wore on the ship when not in uniform. Well, she didn’t like wearing the prisoner garb, even if it was a disguise, so she went ahead and picked out a set of shorts and a green and black sleeveless shirt.

After Pidge had changed, the two older boys turning away to give her some privacy, the outfit showed her scars well. Seeing it, Matt and Shiro were nearly horrified, worried about why the young girl was covered in those. However, they kept silent about it; they felt it was too soon to talk about those.

“Kat… Pidge,” Shiro caught himself with the name, “you ready to go up to the bridge? It sounds like we had some trouble...”

Pidge looked over. Trouble? It was probably Sendak nearing Arus. “Yeah.”


	6. Fellow Paladins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meeting with the paladins, getting ready for a mission, and hoping to continue with the original mission planned. It can't be that hard... right?

There were more of those Earthlings. Pidge honestly didn't know what to make of finding two more when she ended up on the bridge of the castle. Castle with a bridge? That definitely struck her as odd; somehow those two just didn't go together and Pidge wondered if instead the castle was actually a ship. That made sense.

"Holy crow! You guys really did find the green paladin!" Lance declared, noticing the mark on Pidge's shoulder.

Pidge looked over to see her mark as it was perfectly visible. _So they know what it means?_ she thought.

"Hmm?" Allura watched Pidge, thinking her reaction was more of a look of confusion. "My father never understood why, but those who are paladins each have a mark and they correspond with their lion." she explained. Pidge, though, already knew this. Zarkon had informed her before when she was very young; it was how they knew she was a paladin the moment she was found. "Actually, you can even see where Keith's is."

Keith lifted his arm, showing a similar paw-print mark on the lower section of his right arm while Pidge's was on the upper part of her left arm, right near her shoulder. Her eyes darted to Shiro, noticing the claw-like marks that were part of their markings sticking out past his shirt.

 _This makes that guy the red paladin and the other one must be the black paladin._ she thought, doing her best to fight back the bitterness so it didn't show. "I see." she finally said, allowing Allura to think that she explained something vital.

"Hunk and Lance are the other paladins, but we don't need to go showing their marks." Allura stated. "Anyway, we have a predicament. When my father hid away the lions, he locked the black lion here, keeping it sealed until the other four reunite here. However... we're missing one lion.”

 _The red lion... it's on the commander's ship._ Pidge thought. _Keith, right? He's the red paladin... but... Zarkon had hoped that Commander Sendak..._ She pushed those thoughts aside.

"There is some good news, though." Coran declared. "We actually pinpointed where the lion is!"

"I feel like there's a really big _but_ to follow." Lance commented.

"Quite so." Coran nodded. "It's on board a Galra ship..."

"I mean... that's not too bad, right?" Hunk asked. "Can we... uh... get it? Is that hard? Or maybe we should call the Blade to help out?"

 _This guy's seriously a paladin? He's just so... nervous._ Pidge thought. _But... it's kinda cute. He reminds me a bit of Kullo._ She did her best to not smile at the thought, not wanting anyone to ask what was on her mind. Then she thought about what Coran said about the lion being on a ship. _Sendak's ship... and it's probably nearing Arus._

"Well... about that..." Coran mused, messing with his mustache some. As if on cue, a screen came up as a video transmission was forced through. Then, visible as ever, Sendak's face appeared. "Oh quiznak..."

 **"Princess Allura,"** Sendak spoke up, **"I am Commander Sendak of the Galran Empire. On behalf of Emperor Zarkon, lord of the known universe, I command that you hand over the Voltron lions or I will have your planet destroyed."**

Pidge expected that. Sure, the plan was to let them take the red lion so they could get the black lion out, so his threat was, at the moment, just a threat, but it was to be expected of the proud, loyal warrior of the empire. What did confuse her, though, was that Sendak knew the princess' name. How did he know what her name was? Was that even her name? Was she overthinking things? She didn't recall a proper introduction.

When the transmission cut out, Hunk was in a panic. "Um... guys? We've got an angry purple space cat promising to destroy us if we don't hand over the lions? What do we do?" he inquired.

"What we were trained to do, right?" Keith responded.

"Dude, we only have three lions... one belonging to a stranger we don't even know." Lance declared, getting Pidge to glare at him a bit. "I don't know... I don't think we are actually equipped and ready for this. It may be safer to run away until we can form Voltron."

"But in doing so, we leave so many in jeopardy and even risk the black lion somehow getting snatched; these bastards are persistent, remember?" Keith countered. "They'll find a way to take it, with or without the other lions."

"That's enough, you two." Shiro got between the two teens, shoving them back. "Growing up together, and they still can't get along..." He then looked to Allura. "Princess Allura, I understand that we're the paladins, but by a right, these lions are yours. This decision to make is yours."

Allura was nervous. She didn't know what to do. With the paladins of old gone and now left with a bunch of children, she was not prepared.

"If I may suggest, Princess," Coran said softly, "your father left his memories in an AI. Perhaps talking to him will help you come to a decision."

"How long until the ship arrives?" Allura asked.

"Thirty doboshes, I'd say." Coran's response was fairly sullen.

"Then I'll make this quick." Allura nodded before the Altean adviser took her to where the AI was.

-+-+-+-

The princess came to her decision. They were going to get the red lion. _According to plan._ Pidge thought. She and the others were taken to another room, shown the suits of armor. As Pidge stared at the green one before her, she couldn't help but admire it. It was rather impressive, really, and definitely a nice change from the grays, more grays, and a lovely shade of gray she was so used to. It was green and white with a black bodysuit under it.

"Alright boys," Shiro declared before looking down at Pidge, "and lady," Pidge shrugged, actually not caring if someone saw her as a boy or a girl, "let's suit up and get ready."

Pidge dressed up away from the others, though not by choice. Unlike with the shorts and top, when Matt and Shiro simply turned their backs, Shiro and Matt both insisted that she could change in another room. She was confused, but otherwise shrugged it off. No matter.

Once dressed, they were given their weapons. Bayards. “The bayard,” Allura explained, “is the typical weapon used by the paladins. It takes on distinct forms for their paladins.” She watched as four of the paladins were given their bayards, the weapons taking their needed forms. Pidge looked to see hers turn into a small, arrow-like blade of sorts. Short. Close. Simple.

“Aww,” Lance declared, looking over to see what Pidge had after fawning over the blaster his bayard turned into, “you’ve got a cute little bayard.”

Pidge scowled. She then jabbed it into Lance’s side, though not enough to severely harm him. Even the volt of electricity she sent wouldn’t cause serious harm, though it still hurt as he was zapped and yelped before falling over. “Yeah, it is cute, huh?” Pidge smirked.

“Just like their predecessors. Trigel hit Blaytz, too.” Coran chuckled a bit, messing with his mustache.

“Shiro, unfortunately your bayard was lost with your predecessor.” Allura informed the new black paladin. “However, I won’t send you to that cruiser unarmed.” She handed over a sword. “Though not as strong or durable as the bayard, an Altean weapon is still a good thing to have. Hopefully you know how to use a sword?”

Shiro handled the blade, turning it in different directions. “We were all taught close combat just in case.” he informed. “This will work just fine; thank you, Princess.” He then looked over to Matt who had donned a flight suit, similar to one that Allura put on after talking with her father’s AI. “Matt?”

“Don’t think I’m just going to idly stand by.” Matt declared. “While Keith seeks out the red lion, we need to get prisoners off that ship. If there are any, we don’t want them getting hurt, or worse, when you guys form Voltron and attack.”

 _As if they’ll get that far._ Pidge thought. However, she didn’t speak against Matt’s planning to help prisoners, knowing full well that there were some on the ship. She was maintaining her role, playing the part for her mission. Or at least she tried to tell herself that. She had that small voice in the back of her mind telling her to help them. Help them free prisoners, help them get all the lions, and help them form Voltron.

And this time, as the voice spoke, she didn’t get a headache.

Talk about a change of pace.

Allura was reluctant, but she nodded. “Very well.” She got Matt a weapon, too, though he requested a staff, having learned to fight with one better than a sword. “We need to know our plan.”

“It should be kept basic.” Shiro stated. “Hunk, Lance, I think you two can handle distracting Sendak?”

“Should be able to.” Lance stated.

“Oh man… this is… this really is happening, isn’t it?” Hunk asked with a sigh.

“Out of the simulator and into the war, buddy.” Lance declared.

“Just don’t crash, _tailor_.” Keith smirked.

“Hey! I only crashed Blue once.” Lance retorted.

“You crashed it on _one_ planet… several times.” Keith reminded. “And you continually crash the simulator.”

“Yeah, well, I’m sure you won’t be any better when you get the red lion; it’s different in reality from theory.” Lance reminded.

“Okay, that’s enough, cadets!” Shiro scolded the two, getting them to cease their arguing. He then looked to Hunk. “I know you’re scared, Hunk, but we’ve been training all our lives for this. Yes, this is sooner than expected, but we’re here now and it’s time to utilize our training.”

“R-right.” Hunk nodded.

“While you two distract Sendak, Ka… Pidge,” it was going to take some getting used to, “you can get us under the ship so we can sneak in, right? If you’re iffy about it...”

“No… I… I can do it.” Pidge assured with a nod.

Allura smiled. “Good luck, Paladins.” she told them. “We’ll do our best to help aid you. If we can get the castle’s defenses up, at least the particle barrier, then we should be able to fight, too. If not, well, with the barrier, we can at least defend ourselves so we’ll be one less thing to worry about.”

“Then let’s go.” Shiro told the team as they broke apart.

Pidge went to the green lion with Matt, Keith, and Shiro, making sure not to show them the hold she used as her room at times. The mission was important, not her toy collection. Sitting in the cockpit, Pidge removed her goggles and set them down before pulling on her helmet finally. She took a deep breath and nodded.

“We’ve got this, Pidge.” Matt assured, putting a hand on her shoulder.

“Yeah.” Pidge nodded. “Okay, ready to go.” She then took off, keeping low at first and then sweeping in close to the cruiser when it was in sight. While the others thought she got them close enough to break in because of Hunk and Lance’s distraction, Pidge knew it was because of the plan the empire already had.

She got them into the ship and looked around, blinking. It seemed… different. Not like a home anymore. She couldn’t explain it. And then came the pain. Another headache.

“Pidge? Pidge, you okay?” Matt asked, checking on his sister when she cringed, hands clutching onto the helmet she wore. “Pidge...”

“It’s fine… just a headache… it’ll go away soon.” Pidge assured. “We should… split up, huh? Find the lion and the prisoners?”

“Keith and I’ll find the lion; Matt, you and Pidge locate and get the prisoners out of here.” Shiro ordered.

“Yes, sir.” Matt nodded. “Ready, Pidge? Will you be okay for this?”

Pidge nodded. “Yeah… I should be able to handle it.”


	7. Voltron

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the team works harder, Pidge finds her mind caught between hope and an empire with an array of emotions and uncertainty.

Pidge had to tread lightly, not in fear of being caught by the sentries on board the cruiser but rather giving away too soon that she knew the ship like the back of her own hand. She was raised on Sendak’s ship and she spent many years exploring it, even working her way around its inner security and the locked doors as she got older. From its ventilation system to the engines, she knew her way around. That being said, so Matt didn’t question her too much, Pidge had to be careful in helping him look for the prisoners, though she didn’t let them waste time, either.

“Okay, I’m impressed at how well you found the cell block.” Matt admitted, looking into different cells to see if any were occupied, put out when they weren’t.

“Well… I was a prisoner.” she lied. Or did she? At this point, Pidge wasn’t thinking too clearly. A part of her mind told her that this was her home, but another part insisted that the empire had truly imprisoned her. She didn’t know what to believe at the moment and it frightened her.

“You did well in escaping.” Matt smiled. He checked another cell. Empty. “Dammit! They’re all empty so far.”

Pidge blinked. That was odd. She was certain that the cells would be occupied. She thought it over. There were definitely prisoners on board. But where were they? “A group cell.”

“Huh?” Matt looked over.

“Sometimes prisoners are kept in group cells rather than individual ones. This way!” Pidge led the way, soon enough reaching the group cell. She went to the door and knelt beside the panel, prying it open and working with its local system. “Just a few ticks, I should be able to get the cell open.” She worked with it, rearranging the wires inside to short it out enough that the doors would malfunction and open. It was a skill she happily developed and made it impossible to keep her contained to one room if needed.

“Great job!” Matt praised. He then went in. “Mom? Dad?” he called, stepping into the cell. There, a group of aliens, all being different species, huddled together, terrified.

When Pidge stepped in, she felt a little relief that she never actually saw the prisoners on Sendak’s ship and she wasn’t seen, either. With this, they couldn’t identify her to Matt as someone who worked with the empire. Perhaps, though, more than her relief, she felt a sense of dread. She watched the group in their prisoner garb, the tattered tunics, the form-fitting body suits. It made her think of her disguise… and other prisoners she had seen when she went to the arena at different times.

 _You were a prisoner, too. You were just treated different only because of the green lion._ A voice in the back of her head told her; it was one of the few times she wished she would get a headache just so that voice would be drowned out until it shut up. _Had it not been for your destiny, you’d be just like them. Or dead._

“Shut up...” Pidge grumbled to herself.

“Pidge? You say something?” Matt asked, helping some of the prisoners to their feet.

“We need to get them out of here. All cruisers have escape pods, so I should be able to work with one of them and get it sent down to the castle.” Pidge stated. Matt nodded in agreement and let her take the lead. She quickly got them to the escape pods, getting the prisoners boarded onto it. Before she could get them sent down, though, she heard the familiar clunking of metal against metal.

Sentries.

Pidge had trained against them several times before; one time Sendak got frustrated with how many she destroyed and reminded her that the empire couldn’t just waste resources on a kit with too much energy. It was after that that she learned how they worked and how to repair the robotic soldiers; she was perhaps ten years old when she learned. Seeing them try to stop her and Matt, she felt that perhaps they were sent just to help so no one thought this was too easy; if it were too easy, the others would undoubtedly grow suspicious.

“Shit! Not good.” Matt got ready to fight, but Pidge was way ahead of him. He watched, a mix of awe and concern in his eyes, as his sister went at the sentries, quickly dismantling them and getting them shut down, even destroyed. It didn’t take more than a few moments for them to be handled and for Pidge to return to the pod, getting it set to head down to the castle.

“Pidge...” Matt was concerned. He had heard of the arenas and assumed Pidge had been in them before. That would account for the scars that littered her body; he wanted to ask about them, but it wasn’t really the time to do so. He was glad she could fight, able to hold her own, but it frightened him. He didn’t know what hell his sister had to endure, especially since the Blade of Marmora couldn’t seem to keep tabs on her.

“It’s fine.” Pidge commented. “I have a lot of experience in fighting.”

 **“Pidge? Matt? How’d it go?”** came Shiro’s voice over their comm systems.

“Just fine; we got the prisoners out… no sign of Mom or Dad… or the crew.” Matt responded. “How’s it going looking for the red lion?”

 **“If my hair looks whiter than usual, it’s because of the stress.”** Shiro grumbled.

“What’d Keith do?” Matt inquired.

 **“Why do you assume it was my fault?”** Keith inquired.

 **“Keith, you’re a stress inducing ball of fur-lacking instinct… it’s always your fault!”** Lance chimed in over the comms. **“Anyway! Yes, they have the red lion and are out; time to get your rears out, too.”**

“On it.” Matt nodded. “C’mon, Pidge, Let’s go.” He then led the way back to the lion, having quickly memorized their path. When they returned to the lion, Pidge got them back to Arus. And then it was on to getting the black lion.

 _A few more moments… and… and…_ Pidge’s mind felt a little fuzzy. She knew she had a mission to complete. But something in her mind told her not to go with it, to not follow through and to help the other paladins. _What… what do I do? I know my job… but… something doesn’t feel right…_ she thought to herself as she landed the green lion.

“Pidge? Are you okay?” Matt inquired, resting a hand on his sister’s shoulder. “Is it another headache?”

“I… I think I’m fine...” Pidge mumbled.

“Okay...” Matt nodded. “I’m going back to the castle and see if I can help Coran and Allura out. You’ll be fine on your own?”

“Yeah.” Pidge nodded. She watched as Matt left and then looked to see them getting the black lion out of the castle. She watched as Shiro got into the lion and it allowed him to pilot it. _But… Zarkon’s supposed to be the pilot… the paladin… does… does this change everything?_ She asked herself. On one side, she felt it changed nothing; if anything, she was possibly even handing the other paladins over so Zarkon could perhaps even give them the opportunity to fight at his side. On the other hand, she felt this was a bad idea letting Zarkon have the lions.

Before Pidge could really think of the situation further, Sendak’s ship broke the atmosphere, already taking aim and firing upon the castle. With that, she got caught up in trying to stop him, working alongside the paladins. Much like she had been, though, she was confused. A part of her said this was how it should be, but another part felt like she was betraying those who raised her.

She tried to shake off the feeling as she did her best to keep her cover for the time being. One thing no one went over, what would be the cue for Pidge to show her true colours and capture the lions?

 **“Pidge? Pidge! Where’s your head at?”** Shiro called over the comms. **“You need to focus! We have to keep Sendak from taking the lions and destroying the castle!”**

“R-right!” Pidge stammered. Was that right? She was so confused. So lost. But somehow what Shiro told her did feel right. At the same time, though, it felt terribly wrong. Doing her best, though, she tried to set her mind straight and work with the others. Surely nothing too terrible would happen… right?

 **“Guys, now is a very bad time but… uh...”** Hunk spoke up. **“We’ve done all this training, or at least four of us have,”** what they didn’t know was that Pidge had some training with the green lion, **“but none of it taught us how to actually form Voltron.”**

 **“Oh… right… I knew we were forgetting something!”** Lance chimed in.

 **“Shiro, got any ideas?”** Keith inquired.

 **“Not really… there’s nothing here indicating what to do...”** Shiro admitted. **“But we’re connected… so maybe if we’re synchronized it’ll just… happen?”**

“Wait...” Pidge scrunched up her face. “Like magnets thrown together? They just connect?”

 **“Close enough.”** Shiro confirmed. **“So, let’s try to fly in formation.”** And they did try.

At least until Sendak caught them in the tractor beam. Unlike the others, who tried to fight it, Pidge didn’t struggle against it. It must have been Sendak’s cue; it was rather obvious. Either way, she sat there until she felt some sort of tug. It was like a mental pull, something trying to connect to her. The others? The lion?

“Green?” Pidge asked softly, looking around the cockpit. _Voltron…_ she thought. She then focused on it, trying to place the sensation, even ignoring Shiro’s words of encouragement to the others. _Wait… this is… Voltron trying to form? Do the others feel this, too?_ She thought.

In the mind of the green paladin, there was a flash. A sensation. As though someone somewhere was trying to talk to her, trying to help her. Perhaps her own inner voice? The green lion? She didn’t know. All she did know, though, was that when they finally formed Voltron, she felt a wave of relief, as though for the first time since she could ever remember, she was truly safe. She couldn’t explain it, only that it made Pidge feel that forming Voltron and stopping Sendak was the right move.

And they did. They kept Sendak from attacking the castle further, even forcefully removing the ion canon from the ship and striking its hull, sending it crashing down.

When they separated and landed, Pidge felt like her mind was clear. That clarity came with a price as she watched where there was smoke in the distance, the battleship having crashed after their assault. _Papa… Sendak, please be safe…_ she desperately thought. She then looked when Matt rested a hand on her shoulder.

“Good work, Pidge, you did great out there.” Matt proclaimed. He then hugged her. “Glad you’re with the team now.”

“Um… r-right.” Pidge nodded. She had at first stiffened at the hug, but something about it felt so wonderful. So necessary. And she eventually melted into it, letting the older boy hold onto her. _Is this… where I belong?_ She thought, though another voice, one that didn’t feel like her own, told her, _you belong to the empire_. For the first time, mingled with the relief in being with the other Earthlings, she actually felt afraid of the empire she had grown up to be a part of.


	8. Roll Call

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Morning comes quick and training comes quicker. But first the group needs to make sure the team is awake and ready.

Having been raised and trained by the Blade of Marmora, the group from Earth did well with Allura’s decision to test them while working on and checking the alarms for the castle. Allura and Coran had been up for a while, getting it in order and ready for departure and when the others arrived, she was impressed.

“Well,” the princess commented, “not only did you all arrive in a timely manner, but you’re even armed and in your armor. I’m rather impressed; to be honest, I didn’t expect this, given how young you all are.”

“Wait… it was just,” Hunk paused to yawn, “a test? There’s no real threat?”

“While there thankfully was no real threat, had there been, then I would have no wor… wait a tick.” Allura looked over the group. Only four paladins and Matt. “Where’s Pidge?” She crossed her arms. “She should be here, too...”

“Princess, maybe you should take it easy on her?” Matt suggested. “My sister’s been through a lot recently….”

“Wait… sister?” Lance looked over. “As in Pidge is a girl and related to you?!”

“You didn’t realize it?” Keith asked. “I mean, I get she’s small and hard to tell, she’s like what, ten? And Shiro and Matt both made sure she changed into her armor in another room.”

“I thought that had to do with the scars and maybe Pidge was self-conscious about them.” Lance defended.

“Okay, fair enough, but you should have at least been able to tell she was related to Matt.” Keith pointed out. “She’s the spitting image of him! She even has his old hairstyle before he grew it out some.”

“She’s not ten, she’s fifteen, Keith, and yes, Lance, she is my sister.” Matt gave an exasperated sigh in response to the others.

“Wait… fifteen? But she’s so tiny!” Hunk chimed in.

“Are we forgetting that she’s apparently related to Matt?” Lance questioned.

“Boys!” Allura clapped her hands loudly to get their attention, getting the others to look back at her. “And Matt, I do understand your concern, but Voltron is important and we need the team to train together. We can’t just turn around and let a paladin slack off… Now then, we should locate her and then get you all off to training.”

“Training for what?” Hunk rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. “Can’t we sleep a bit longer first before we do anything?”

“Hunk,” Shiro spoke up, “this isn’t like being on Earth; this time we’re actually in the war. And we need to be prepared.” He offered a smile, hoping to reassure the yellow paladin.

“Yeah, I guess.” Hunk nodded. “So… what sort of training do we need to do?”

“Practice forming Voltron, which you’ll need Pidge for.” Allura stated. “While you did succeed yesterday, you’ll need to be able to form Voltron at any given moment. And while four of you have grown up together, training since the beginning, you’ll need to work on this with a new member to the group.” She glanced at Matt, seeing the saddened look on his face. He didn’t want to see Pidge as a _new member_ , she had always been the paladin. But she was taken away and could not train or bond with the team. “I’m sorry, that came out wrong...”

“No… it’s… it’s not inaccurate.” Matt admitted.

“Princess,” Shiro spoke up, “before we begin our training, might I request communicating home?” Allura tilted her head to the side some, prompting Shiro to give his reasoning. “We left rather suddenly and Kolivan will want to know where we are and that we’re safe. And that we’ve found Pidge, too.”

“Communications are a bit iffy at the moment, and from my understanding, your planet is pretty far.” Allura commented. “By tomorrow, you should be able to contact the others and let them know.”

“Thank you.” Shiro nodded, grateful for that and a reason why he couldn’t right then and there. He then looked to Matt. “We should get Pidge, then, and begin this training.”

“I’ll see if she’s still in her room then.” Matt assured before leaving, heading for the corridor where their rooms were assigned. He went to Pidge’s room, checking inside it to see if she was awake. “Pidge?” he called out softly, getting the light turned on. Nothing. No one was there. There wasn’t even sign that the bed had been slept in at all. “Pidge? Where...” He began to worry and ran back to the bridge to report his sister missing.

-+-+-+-

From the moment Pidge was able to hack into the doors and get into otherwise sealed off rooms, she always found her way to the green lion, happily entering the hold and seeking comfort there. Sometimes it was just to be comfortable and have a change in lighting, other times it was to be put at ease, the lion making her feel safe when she couldn’t explain what felt so wrong around her.

Pidge had gotten to the point where she practically turned part of the lion’s hold into her secondary room, equipped with a bed and her plush toys and various items she collected over the years. Being in a new group and left with so many questions and a cocktail of emotions, Pidge felt safest curled up there, snuggling in close to her toys, practically being buried since some were almost as big as she was; Sendak always questioned her desire for the toys and why Haxus indulged her wants, but even he would cave and occasionally pick something up for her when there was an opportunity.

It was in her make-shift room where the others found her, surprised by the state of the area. Yes, the mess surprised them, Pidge wasn’t exactly tidy with her little living space, but it was mainly the fact that it had quickly been turned into a room. How had that happened? When? The others were surprised, but Shiro found himself concerned.

It didn’t seem right.

“Whoa, this place is messier than Rachel’s room back home.” Lance declared, picking up a plush depicting some sort of alien creature. He thought of his sister’s room and how messy it was, but seeing Pidge’s, he definitely felt she was a typical teen.

“I think it’s kinda cute.” Hunk hummed. “And look how much tinier she looks with that pile around her.”

Tiny. That definitely stood out. The others didn’t miss how small Pidge looked to begin with, but seeing her like that, it definitely drove that fact deeper.

“I can see why she didn’t hear the alarms.” Keith rationalized, looking around the area. A total mess and not just the toys. There were papers everywhere, various drawings on them. “Hmm… Isn’t it odd that this place looks so… lived in?”

“My thoughts exactly.” Shiro confirmed.

“But she was a prisoner, wasn’t she?” Hunk inquired.

“Maybe she hadn’t always been a prisoner?” Lance suggested. “Maybe at one point she did live in here, trying to be safe, but recently she and the lion were captured?” The others looked to him, noting that the blue paladin made a valid point. “I mean, Tia Krolia did always tell us that they could, within reason and close enough proximity, track the lions. So they probably found and captured her.”

“It’s possible.” Matt agreed, nodding.

Shiro, though, honestly hoped that was the case. None of the Blades ever disclosed to them about what happened to the fifth paladin, only that she wasn’t there to be trained alongside the group. When asked, the others, especially Kolivan, would get silent, even sullen and just excuse themselves. Remembering that and seeing this, Shiro didn’t fully know what was going on; he hoped they could contact Kolivan and the others back on Earth to let them know of their finding of Katie, Pidge, and perhaps even get some answers or guidance from them.

“Nng...” Pidge grumbled, shuffling under the toys and making some tumble away. “Be quiet… just a… couple more doboshes ‘fore roll call...”

“Huh?” Hunk grunted, looking to Pidge. “Oh, I guess she’s dreaming.”

“Seems like she wants to sleep more… but we do have training.” Keith reminded.

“Pidge? Hey, Pigeon, wakey wakey.” Matt knelt beside Pidge, gently nudging her shoulder to try and wake her up. “C’mon, Pidge, time to-whoa!”

To say that the others were surprised by all that happened would be an understatement. No one expected Pidge to quickly wake up, and move, knocking Matt to the ground and with her bayard at his throat. What alarmed them more was the murderous glare in her gaze. Even though part of the team already witnessed her reaction when she woke up in the infirmary, they were still stunned by this reaction.

“Holy crow!” Lance yelped, jumping back.

“Pidge, Pidge, it’s okay! It’s just me!” Matt quickly told her, trying to show he meant no harm. He took in a deep breath when she didn’t let up. “It’s okay. You’re safe. No one’s going to hurt you.” He softened his tone, trying to sound more at ease despite the fear that rushed through him.

Pidge blinked before her gaze completely changed, as though a sense of realization had washed over her. Her shoulders slumped and her bayard deactivated before falling from her hand. “Matt...”

Matt slowly sat up, the girl scooting off his lap. He then quickly hugged her, getting Pidge to make a small noise of surprise at the sudden contact. “You’ll be okay. None of us are going to hurt you. You’re safe here; you’re safe with us.” he quietly assured, certain that Pidge reacted as she did because she was used to such a hostile environment.

Pidge just allowed herself to be held onto. It was oddly comforting. After a moment, though, she scooted away. “What are you guys even doing in here?” she asked, rubbing her eyes. She got up and picked up some of her toys, quickly tossing them onto her bed.

“What are we… what are you doing sleeping in the lion?” Lance inquired. “I know I feel close to Blue, but just straight up sleeping in a lion without letting anyone know? We were worried when we couldn’t find you.”

“Well here I am.” There was a chill in Pidge’s response that sent shivers down the spines of her teammates. “So what do you guys want? Are we under attack or something?”

“No, but we should be training.” Shiro commented.

Training? Pidge perked up. If there was something she actually liked, it typically was training. Whether it was on Sendak’s ship or during the different months she had gone to a training camp, as expected for many kits before they enlist as cadets, it was a good way to spend time. And honestly, she didn’t see any harm in training with the others. If anything, she felt she could learn a bit more about them if needed. After all, especially with the cocktail of thoughts and emotions she was going through, she still didn’t fully know if the paladins were her enemies or not, so it was good to learn about them.

“Okay, what sort of training?” she asked.

“Learning to form Voltron together.” Shiro responded.

And her spirit dropped. That sort of training? It sounded boring. However, she figured she would have to learn eventually; if the mission went according to plan and she got the lions back to Zarkon, then she would eventually work with others, or maybe that group if he decided to keep them on as his fellow paladins. Well, she figured she might as well get it done and over with.


	9. Alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes when you're surrounded by so many people like yourself, you feel even more alone in the world.

She hated it.

Pidge absolutely, positively, and without any doubt hated training with the others. And it wasn't that she hated working alongside the other paladins, something about them reminded her of her training times with other kits, running simulated missions and sparring with each other, learning the basics of physical combat, or even going through simulated flights, learning to fly ships at their young and tender ages. Sure, this wasn’t entirely like that, but it did take her back. But no. That wasn’t what she hated.

It was the princess.

Pidge grumbled a number of hushed Galran expletives about the princess. Allura had decided to push the team further, expecting them to find a way to form Voltron with her firing upon them with the castle's defense system. They were kits for crying out loud! Did the princess not care about the well-being of children? Sure, the other members of the team were still older than her, but most were still kits in the eyes of the Galra and would have still been considered cadets, not soldiers in a war.

But there they were, running around in their lions and trying to dodge the attacks and still be in synch, hoping to form Voltron again. Unlike in their fight against Sendak, they felt no pull. There was no connection. There was nothing.

At least Pidge wasn't the only one upset by this. Most of the others voiced their dislike for Allura's idea of training. Through them, Pidge learned that their method of training didn't consist of anything this drastic. They were properly trained and drills were built up to properly teach them. This, though?

Allura really was no teacher and she certainly wasn't inspiring them.

When the particle barrier, which kept them locked out for a couple of hours, finally came down on its own and the shooting ceased, the others wasted no time in fleeing inside and taking a break.

"Ugh, I figured forming Voltron would be a whole lot easier." Lance whined, sprawled out on one of the couch segments in the common. "I mean, what are we doing wrong? Aren't we a team?"

"That's up for debate." Keith admitted.

"Huh?" Lance propped himself up on one arm. "What do you mean?"

"Only four of us are actually a team." Keith crossed his arms. "We haven't been training with Pidge."

"Hey, don't go blaming the inability to form Voltron on Pidge!" Matt snapped, sitting with the group. He did not like the idea of anyone insinuating that it was Pidge's fault.

"I wasn't blaming anyone; I'm just saying that we don't have the experience as a full team; the princess can't expect this with limited time together." Keith defended himself.

"But... we formed Voltron before... why is it so hard now?" Hunk inquired. "It clearly has nothing to do with being in the heat of battle..." He then looked over when Allura and Coran walked in, the two talking about what still needed to be checked and what was fully operational within the castle.

"Hmm?" Allura looked to the others there. "Oh! You did it! You finally formed Voltron!" she declared, looking proud.

"I wish..." Keith grumbled. "When the shooting stopped and the barrier went down, we just flew on inside."

"Say what?" Allura scowled, though her looked was more directed at Coran.

"Sorry about that, Princess," Coran apologized, "in order to test the fire suppressors, I had to turn off the castle's defense system momentarily."

"Great... so no progress..." Allura sighed. She then looked to see Shiro enter from another door. "And where were you, Shiro?" she inquired, arms crossed across her chest as she leveled him a stern look.

"I was checking to see if I could get a hold of Kolivan with the black lion while the others took a break." Shiro responded. "It didn't go through. But now that that's done, we do need to return to training." The others groaned in disappointment. "Guys, we can't give up."

"Don't think of it as giving up, think of it as trying to come up with another way because someone," Pidge motioned to Allura, "knows nothing about trying to help or inspire us to form Voltron." She didn't miss the glare the princess sent in her direction and easily chose to ignore it.

"Hmm, perhaps I could be of some assistance." Coran spoke up. "You see, the previous paladins had trained together for a long time, even before there was a Voltron." Hearing him, Pidge perked up and listened.

_Zarkon actually trained with the others before Voltron came to be?_ she thought to herself. _I never heard of that before._

"You see, they were like a pack of yalmors linked to the ears with how well they worked together." Coran continued. "They've been through hundreds of battles and knew each other as well as they knew themselves.

"Yeah... we definitely lack that..." Lance sighed.

"Which is why I recommend the training deck."

"Um... wait... there was a training deck this entire time?!" Hunk inquired, looking at the mustached Altean with a stunned look. "Why didn't anyone mention it sooner?!"

"Because, it wasn't fully operational until recently with the diagnostics we’ve been running." Coran informed. "So, how about it? Let's work on some team building exercises so you can form Voltron?"

How bad could team building exercises be? Pidge didn't think there would be much issue. Even when training at a base with other kits, to a certain degree, they had to learn to work as a team. Dare she admit it, but the green paladin felt that she was better at it than most of the others in her training group. While most would be ready to cut out the weakest link in the group for the sake of the mission, Pidge always found a way to keep the team together and _surviving_ to the end.

This couldn't be that bad, right? If anything, at least it couldn't be worse than Allura's idea to get them to form Voltron.

**"Alright, Paladins,"** Coran spoke from the observation tower, watching the five paladins below with Matt's company, **"the paladin code states that you must put your team members' safety above your own. For this drill you'll be facing drones; you'll need to have each others' backs and protect them."** On their armor, personal particle barriers formed, looking to be like shields. As well as this, a group of drones, round compared to the pyramid shaped ones Pidge was used to, showed up, circling around the team. **"Remember, protect your teammates or no one will be there to protect you!"**

Pidge was quick to respond. With the drones spinning around their group, their backs near each other, it took everything in her to just remain on the defensive. She was used to retaliating, going on the offensive. It was what she was taught. It was how she was raised. But she kept with it the best she could, continuing to block the assault laid unto them by the drones.

“Okay, this is new.” Lance admitted as he did his best to block the shots. “What good is this again? Didn’t Kolivan tell us that drones don’t shoot?”

“Typically they don’t, but sentries do; just think of it as training for those things.” Keith explained, shifting ever so slightly to ensure he could block the attacks.

Pidge listened to the others talk. They really were a team, able to hold conversations with each other, encourage one another as they did their best to deal with the attack. She, though, didn’t converse with them. She wasn’t used to this group and she didn’t hold the same bond with them that they held with each other.

Then she heard Hunk yelp. He was hit and fell down through a hole that opened up in the floor. One down, four to go. Lance was next, followed by Keith. All that remained was Pidge and Shiro, the two back to back. At least until Shiro didn't move in time to block a shot to his leg, thus putting him out of the exercise and down a hole with the others.

Being the last one there, Pidge did her best. Unlike most kits her age, before becoming a cadet, she had extra training, some of it pushing to prepare her more for the future. She had a destiny ahead of her; she was meant to pilot the green lion. Sure, now she was debating if she was meant to fly alongside Zarkon or if she would be with this new team, but goal was the same. She was part of Voltron.

And like hell she was going to let a few measly drones take her down so easily. Being the only one left and without a team to help look after her, she went on the offensive, bringing forth her bayard and activating it. She went at the drones, quick to disable, even destroy, them. When she stopped, when there were no more drones attacking her, she looked around the empty room. No team.

It was lonely.

She was lonely.

It made her realize how much she missed her friends from training. She missed Drek and Kullo. And she missed Haxus and Sendak. She may have been with others who were apparently the same species as she was, but she found herself feeling more alone than she cared to admit. This was something Pidge didn’t like and made her want to head back to the green lion and hide there, will the dreaded emptiness away in solitude.

Up in the observation tower, Coran was still watching. He kept an eye on how Pidge moved, even quick to take the offensive when all alone. That was not part of the task, but she still acted; it wasn't like he told them not to if they got to that point. But that wasn't what concerned him. What did was the way she moved. Like someone who hadn't spent years in hiding or as a mere prisoner. It was as though she spent years training to be a warrior.

"Coran?" Matt inquired, a look of concern on his face. “Is something wrong?”

“Hmm? Oh, no… she’s just… well, surprisingly skilled.” Coran commented. “Well, sometimes the biggest surprises come in the smallest packages. No offense to her and her size, though.” He then went over the data. While they were skilled physically, and he was pleased to see that, he was worried about something. The four boys all conversed and spoke freely, but Pidge did not get involved.

She was silent.

She was isolated.

And it worried him more than her seemingly unusual ability to fight. He knew that unless they actually bonded and worked together, socialized more, they would probably continue to struggle to form Voltron again.

“Anyway,” he spoke up finally, “I’d say it’s about time we start the next test.”

“And what test is that?” Matt inquired.

“One even you can help out with so we have an even amount of people.” Coran messed with his mustache. “We’ll be working with an invisible maze!”

Invisible maze! The way Coran said it sounded really exciting; Matt was thrilled at first. But even before the test was set up, he froze. If training with the Blade of Marmora taught him anything, it was that if something seemed way too easy and calm, it was a facade. “This… this isn’t going to be pleasant, is it?” he inquired.

“Possibly not.” Coran responded. “After all, with how Pidge shocked Lance with her bayard, I can assume Earthlings don’t take to electricity well.”

“Coran, you have a talent for understatement.” Matt sighed. “Oh boy, this is going to be… en-lightning. Or at least a total shock to the others.”


	10. "I'm not a prisoner."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Training continues and Pidge finds it getting increasingly more difficult.

Drill after drill, exercise after exercise. It was hard work and Pidge did the best she could with it. Until they came to another exercise; it was, according to Coran, the most important exercise for the team to form Voltron. Honestly, she felt that if it was so important, why didn’t they just start with that one? No matter, instead, she sat on the floor with the others, a device on each of their heads.

**“Now the most important part to paladin training is to meld your minds and focus on the same goal: forming Voltron.”** Coran informed them.

“Wait… what?” Pidge blinked and looked back to the observation deck looming above them. “Meld our minds?”

“It means we just… synchronize our brains and think in the same melting pot.” Lance explained in his simplified yet extremely valid and understandable way.

“I know what it means!” Pidge snapped, making Lance yelped and physically recoil. “Ugh… this sucks...”

“C’mon, Pidge, I’m sure it won’t be hard.” Shiro assured.

“That’s not what’s on my mind...” Pidge grumbled.

**“Can we please continue?”** Coran questioned. **“Now, I want you all to relax and open your minds. No walls. No secrets. Be open with each other.”**

Pidge concentrated the best she could, but she was also keeping up her walls. Coran may have said that there should be no secrets, but she still kept hers. She was not about to let the others know everything, especially the fact that she was technically loyal to Zarkon.

There was a problem, though.

Pidge’s mind ended up focusing on something else that she actually didn’t want to think about. Someone else.

Haggar.

And with that, she couldn’t focus on her lion or forming Voltron.

“Oh, c’mon Pidge!” Keith grumbled. “You need to focus!”

“I’m trying!” Pidge exclaimed. “I just… I don’t like people poking around in my mind!” She never did. Her mind was supposed to be her sacred place. Her safest place. Yet wasn’t. It had been intruded upon and sadly this wasn’t the first time.

**“Pidge, you’re supposed to be open with and connected to your fellow paladins. Now! Let’s clear those minds!”** Coran prompted.

Pidge grumbled but dared to try again. She was honestly hating this exercise far more than Allura’s attempt earlier that day. She did her best to ignore Coran’s prompting and commentary, hoping to focus on the green lion.

But Haggar returned to her focus.

As did a memory.

_“No! No! Let me go!” Pidge cried out, flailing the best she could. She was so young, her hair having not yet received that white streak. She had to be strapped down to the table, the restraints cutting into her flesh as she kept on struggling. “I don’t want this! I don’t like it! Papa! Sendak!” she screamed. As much as she screamed, her voice didn’t carry down the halls; the room was sealed and soundproof._

_“Hush now, little paladin.” Haggar rasped, her hand gently caressing Pidge’s cheek in false reassurances. Pidge had already learned to not let herself fall for the witch’s attempt at motherly love, trying to sooth the child only to hurt her in the end. “This will help you in the long run. You’ll be strong so you can one day serve at our emperor’s side.”_

_“I don’t want this! Stop it!” Pidge cried out as she continued to fight against the restraints. “Please… please don’t… Papa… Papa… Sendak...” She wanted them to rescue her. She wanted them to stop Haggar. She didn’t understand why the emperor allowed his priestess, this creature she called a witch, to do this to her._

_“The more you fight it, the more it will hurt.” Haggar reminded as she fixed up a syringe of a luminescent fluid. Pidge’s eyes widened when she saw it. She didn’t know what it was called, only that she always felt sick afterwards and her head would feel like it was pounding with the worst screeching noise she could imagine in her ears for several vargas after. Even when it would clear up, she would have moments where she felt so disconnected from herself._

_She felt like she was losing a bit of herself with each treatment._

_“Now, try to hold still.” Haggar stated, carefully sliding the syringe into the small girl’s flesh._

Pidge jumped back with a scream, throwing the device from her head to the ground and causing it to shatter. She crouched down and rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet, her hands over her ears. “No! No! Get out of my head! Get out! Leave me alone! Leave me alone… Papa… Papa please...” she whined. “Please save me...”

“Pidge? Pidge!” Shiro was quick to throw his device off, accidentally causing it to break. “It’s okay, Pidge, it’s okay.” he tried to assure her, carefully putting his hands on her arms. She kept on shaking and rocking, mumbling to herself; without a sign of her fighting him off, the black paladin moved to pull Pidge down to sit fully, this time embracing her completely. “I’m right here, Pidge. No one will hurt you. You’re safe with us.”

“Just… just what was that?” Hunk asked, his eyes wide. They didn’t see the full image, receive the full memory, but they saw Haggar and they felt the pain and fear Pidge went through. Just how old was she? None of them knew and it really concerned them.

“Something I wouldn’t wish upon anyone...” Keith admitted. He dared to go closer just as Matt ran into the training deck, worried for Pidge’s well-being. “Pidge… you’ll be okay. You’re with us now.”

“Stay out of my head… stay out of my head...” Pidge whimpered; between that and asking for _Papa_ , the paladins not knowing who that was, she wasn’t getting much out.

“Coran, I think now is a good time to take a break.” Lance told the Altean when he joined the group.

“I agree.” Coran nodded. It didn’t take the Altean long to procure some nutrient rich drink pouches, handing them out to the paladins who had been hard at work with their training. He observed Pidge as she cautiously sipped from the pouch she was handed before relaxing, consuming its contents rather quickly. He wanted to ask about what happened, though he wasn’t the only one, but he didn’t want to worsen the situation. He feared that if he did, he would set them back even further; he worried he could accidentally push them in the opposite direction of Voltron.

More than that, though, he feared what sort of life Pidge had to endure. All he understood from the others that Pidge had gone missing; the others didn’t have all the details and couldn’t explain everything. Worse yet, no one knew that Pidge was potentially their enemy.

“After this,” he spoke gently, “we should resume training.”

“I don’t like that mind one...” Pidge grumbled, accepting a second pouch when Coran handed her another.

“Don’t worry, there are other training exercises that don’t require that method.” Coran assured. He noticed Pidge quickly finish off her second drink and offered a third; she was eager to accept and start on it. _They were talking earlier about her age and size… she must be so malnourished…_ he thought. _I ought to make something to help her grow… oh! That’s it! I know how to help them bond!_ He was pulled from his thoughts when he heard the door to the training deck open. “Ah, Princess.”

“What’s going on?” Allura inquired. “Aren’t you supposed to be training?”

“Ah, we just had a little break is all.” Coran declared.

“I’d like a break for an actual meal, too.” Hunk mumbled. “We haven’t even had breakfast...”

“Ugh, at this point, I may be too tired for an actual meal...” Lance whined. He then shot his stomach a look when it audibly rumbled at him. “Oh quiet you.”

“Actually, Princess,” Coran declared, “I think sitting down for a bite to eat would do them good.” Unbeknownst to the others, Coran winked at Allura, hinting something to her.

Allura was confused at first before it hit her. She nodded. “Very well, that would best.” she stated. “Hmm, the castle’s computers are handling the scans to see what else needs to be fixed and adjusted, so I shall join you all.”

“Are we supposed to feel honoured or something?” Pidge deadpanned.

“Pidge...” Matt nudged his sister, trying to remind her to keep her manners.

Coran was quick to whip up some food, though most of the group questioned if it really could be called food. Pidge looked at it cautiously, unsure of what to make of it. She was used to a purplish goopy substance provided as basic rations at bases and on ships; this stuff was an odd green goo. Sniffing, she could at least deduce it smelled better.

_Hopefully this stuff isn’t any worse on my stomach than the usual goop I’m used to._ She admitted to herself. Before anyone could dig in, Coran activated some sort of restraint. Pidge nearly went ballistic at being restrained, but she quickly calmed herself down before she could have a meltdown. _Great… and I was even willing to try this green gunk…_ she thought bitterly.

She didn’t understand how Coran explained this to be another teamwork exercise at first, being told that they would have to feed each other, but she did know she hated it. She was actually hungry and restrained to her chair on one side and to Keith on the other.

_Stupid Alteans…_ She let out a low growl as she just stared at the food, listening to the others try their best but ultimately end up arguing. As she listened, she was confused. _Didn’t these guys train together all these deca-phoebs? How are they so out of sync?_ She thought, curious. This went on for a while. At least until Allura spoke up.

“Ugh… do Earthlings always complain so much?” Allura grumbled. “And on top of that, most of you have been training together for so long… yet you’re still this bad!?”

“Hey, don’t get mad at us!” Keith snapped. “We’re exhausted! You’ve just been pushing us all day!”

“It’s tiring… even the Blade isn’t this bad with training us...” Lance added.

“It would be appreciated if you would lessen this… nonsense on us.” Shiro shifted his hands, showing to be restrained to Hunk and his own chair.

“Lessen? I doubt some _warden_ would do that.” Pidge grumbled.

“Excuse me?” It was silent after Pidge spoke and Allura glared. “A warden?”

“You’re treating us like prisoners.” Pidge hissed. “Restraining us? Pushing us like this?” _I’m not a prisoner… I’m not a prisoner…_

“Now Pidge, that’s no way to talk to the princess.” Coran tried to quell the rage he could already tell was welling up in both girls.

“Princess? Of what?” Oh snap. “She’s got no kingdom, she’s got no subjects, all she has is us and she’s no princess of ours.”

“Damn, Pidge, that was savage.” Lance stared with wide eyes. He then yelped when a glob of food was flung past and smacked Pidge right in the face. He pulled his lips in to form a straight line, looking back and forth between Pidge and Allura. He was surprised that Allura actually flung the food at the green paladin, but he was equally stunned that Pidge just stared and didn’t actually retaliate. Of course, he wasn’t the only one left in shock; even Coran was at a loss for words.

It was tense. Not much time passed but it felt like an eternity with the others waiting to see how Pidge would respond. When those agonizingly long seconds passed, they had their answer. Allura was met with a face full of green goo and Pidge smirking; it was impossible to tell if her expression was playful or malicious.

“Two can play at that game… _princess_.” Pidge cooed; the way she called Allura a princess sent chills down the spines of the others, especially her fellow paladins and own brother.

Two indeed could play that game. Of course, as the saying went, _the more the merrier_. Pidge couldn’t really tell how, but the others got involved in what became a food fight. More curiously and even surprising to the younger teen, she found herself having fun, even full on laughing.

That was when Allura pointed out that they were finally working together. Five people brought together, one being a complete stranger among them, and they worked together against a common foe.

Something about it made Pidge feel just a little bit lighter in her heart.

“Well guys? What do you think?” Shiro suggested. “Ready to try and form Voltron?”

Was she ready? Pidge didn’t know, but she did have to try. Right?

“Can we have dessert first? Or… do we form Voltron first and then indulge ourselves on dessert?” Hunk questioned.

“Let’s try first.” Shiro stated.

When they were released from their restraints, the paladins went to their lions. Pidge took in a deep breath, trying to collect her thoughts. _This is a team… it’s not a prison… right?_ She thought to herself. _You can do this, Pidge… you’ve proven you can do anything you set your mind on… so… but… what if…_ She shook her head. She had to get those thoughts out for now. There were still so many questions. So many feelings. She was still sorting through them.

_Okay… time to form Voltron._

-+-+-+-

“Sire,” Haggar approached the emperor, bowing her head in respect, “there is an issue.”

“Did your weapon you send to take them down fail already?” Zarkon inquired.

“It has yet to arrive; that is not the issue.” Haggar replied. “It’s the green paladin. Slowly I feel her straying from the empire… from her loyalty to you...”

Zarkon was silent. “Give her time; she will remember what is important.” he commented. “Or she will be brought back here and you will help her remember.”

“Yes, sire.”


	11. Shedding Some Light

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Pidge learns something new, she finds herself even more conflicted.

“Man! Can you believe it?” Lance cheered, looking like a giddy schoolboy. “We totally formed Voltron! It was like _whoosh whoosh bam snap! Here comes Voltron, son!_ And whoomp! All of a sudden! No delay, no struggle!” He punched the air in his ecstatic state; to be honest, the others couldn’t help but wonder how he hadn’t lost his balance walking down the hall as he excitedly flailed about. “Yeah! Zarkon better watch out! We’re here to kick names and take ass!”

“That’s _take names and kick ass_.” Keith sighed, shaking his head. “Dude, you need to settle down. Maybe actually go to bed tonight?”

“But I’m just too pumped! I don’t think I can sleep!” Lance bounced around.

“Wow, talk about an adrenaline rush.” Hunk snickered.

“Eh, he’ll crash sooner or later.” Keith mused. He then looked around. “By the way, has anyone seen Pidge? She kinda vanished after we finally formed Voltron.”

“Probably to get some food?” Hunk inquired. “Or maybe find Matt? You know, siblings and all.”

“I’ve been thinking about that… does Pidge even know they’re siblings?” Lance looked to his fellow paladins, getting them all to stop.

“Why wouldn’t she?” Keith asked. “She and Matt look identical. I mean, minus the white bit in her hair, but...”

“I don’t know, even Lance couldn’t tell they were related.” Shiro pointed out, motioning to the blue paladin.

“You know what, I’m actually not going to hold it against you because it’s a very good point… but that’s just harsh.” Lance commented.

“But more than that… she acted like she’s never seen any other being like herself… like us… so… I don’t know… she may not even realize she’s got a family...” Shiro added, a downcast look settling in his eyes. “Anyway, maybe we should find Matt; he may know where she is or help us find her.”

“He could be in the common room again.” Hunk suggested. In agreement on their destination, the others went toward there, hoping to find someone.

-+-+-+-

Matt wasn’t in the common room, though; neither was Pidge for that matter. In fact, he was sitting on a bench-like protrusion in the green lion’s hold, watching as Pidge just laid on her bed, curled up with her Yupper. He had been trying to convince her that it would be fine to sleep in the castle, but she wasn’t budging.

“I guess the green lion’s the only thing that’s given you comfort, huh?” Matt stated. “Is that why you made this your room?” He picked up a strange plush creature, the toy reminding him of some sort of bear. “It’s full of toys. Makes me wish I could foresee this day coming, I would’ve brought the toy I picked out for you long ago.”

“Huh?” Pidge sat up. “Picked out? For me?” She looked confused. “What do you mean? Do we… know each other? I mean prior to… this.”

Matt stared a moment before smiling sadly. “Katie… Pidge… what do you know about your childhood? Or family?” Pidge looked away; she didn’t want to accidentally hint that she was raised by the empire. She didn’t know that a Blade of Marmora agent had been raising her, too, and she didn’t know that initially the others were aware of Haxus trying to raise her. “I guess… I guess it was bad, huh? The agent couldn’t keep you close or protect you, huh?”

_Agent? What agent?_ Pidge thought.

“Pidge… fifteen years ago, you were born to Sam and Colleen Holt on the Gaia Space Station. It was in the outer parts of our solar system.” Matt explained. “You were born there to loving parents.” He sighed. “But shortly after your birth, you were taken away… as was most of the crew of that station… And you were separated from your parents. From… our parents.”

“From our pare… wait!” Pidge’s eyes went wide. “Our parents? As in yours too?!” She clutched onto her Yupper more, legs entwined around its form. “Wait a tick… that means… we’re siblings?”

Matt nodded. So, she only recognized them as the same species; well, he couldn’t fault her for not clicking into them looking more alike than she did with Shiro. She had apparently never seen someone of her species before, so he couldn’t expect her to realize they were related. “You’re my little sister.”

Pidge blinked before looking down. She didn’t know what to make of what she was told. A sibling? And she did have parents? And more than that… he said she was taken away. Shiro had said it before, too, but hearing it from Matt… it seemed to sink in more.

“Pidge?” Matt asked.

“I’m tired…” Pidge muttered.

“Do you want me to stay with you?” Matt asked, hoping she would allow him to remain. She shook her head. “Okay. Be sure to eat the supper I brought you; Hunk’s hoping to work on new dishes tomorrow so we’re not eating this… um… well, at least it’s edible.” He stood up. “If you need me, just call, okay? And we’ll work on getting you out of the lion and into the castle one day.” He smiled and walked off. “Good night, Pidge.”

“Night...” Pidge whispered softly. “… big brother...”

There was so much on Pidge’s mind. Whenever she brought up where she came from as a child, others would just tell her that they found her, helpless and in need of care and that the empire took her in as though she was one of their own. They could have easily put her on a civilian base on some occupied planet or worse, they could have had her raised in a prison camp or something. Instead, she was treated like a proud member of the Galran race.

Now she didn’t feel so proud. Now she felt even more conflicted than before. Was she being lied to? If so, then by who? Zarkon who had been so benevolent and patient with her? Sendak who, despite being strict and well disciplined, had cared for her? Her fellow paladins who worked hard to be a team with her? Matt, her own brother? Haxus?

Haxus…

Pidge felt tears well up in her eyes. She thought about him and the times she would ask him questions.

_“Papa...” Little Pidge sat on Haxus’ lap as he gently pulled her hair up, tying it off into two little bunches that puffed out at the top of her head. “Papa… why am I so different?”_

_“Different?” Haxus inquired around the elastic tie in his mouth. “What do you mean?”_

_“Well… you and Sendak are Galra… so is Emp-ra Zarkon.” Pidge responded. “But… what am I? Where am I from?”_

_Haxus was silent as he pulled the elastic band out of his mouth and finished with Pidge’s hair. He then pulled her into a hug. “I’m so sorry...”_

_“Papa? What’s wrong?” Pidge turned in his hold and looked up to him. Was he… crying? She didn’t understand what was wrong, only that he seemed upset._

Pidge never asked Haxus again about what she was or where she came from. She didn’t want to hurt him again and she did her best with who she was rather than caring about what she was. “Papa… why were you so sorry? Is it because… you couldn’t tell me that I may have been actually taken from my family?” she asked herself. She hugged her Yupper more, sobbing into its old fabric body. She felt so lost and confused; she didn’t know what to do anymore; her whole world… her whole universe was turned upside down.

And she felt weak.

Pidge may have been raised with always being told that _weakness was an infection and should be cut away_ , but she was still a kit, too. At least if something troubled her back on the ship, she could go to Sendak or Haxus for comfort and support. When she would spend her time at the training camp, she would be with Drek and Kullo, seeking out their comfort. She was aware there were others, but they knew each other better; she didn’t know them enough to open up.

“Papa… I want you back...” she whimpered. “Where are you…?”

-+-+-+-

Coran finished a few final checks in the castle, making sure the computers were running the final diagnostic scans so he knew what was to be fixed come morning. He then did the bed checks, making sure the others were getting proper rest so they could train again tomorrow; they may have been able to form Voltron, but they were still children who needed to train so they would be ready for the war waiting outside of Arus’ atmosphere.

He stopped at Pidge’s room and checked inside. Empty. Well, Matt did inform him that she most likely would be sleeping in the lion a while longer until she came to relax more around them. He hoped that was the case; he worried that perhaps things were going by too quickly for the green paladin, but he also knew that the situation wasn’t ideal to begin with and that they had to do their best.

Once sure of the others being out cold, even Lance despite his earlier adrenaline rush, Coran went to his room to turn in for the night. He barely had time to pull the covers down before he heard a knock on his door. “Hmm? Who could that be this varga of the night?” he inquired, going over to the door. He opened it up and found himself surprised when he saw a very red eyed Pidge standing there, her Yupper clutched in her arms.

“Pidge,” Coran knelt down in front of her, like a parent talking to a small and terrified child, “what’s the matter? You look like you’ve either had fultiper pollen blown into your face or...” He stopped. Crying. He knew she had been crying. “What’s the matter? Anything I can do to help?”

Pidge didn’t know how to explain it, but Coran was pleasant. He almost seemed like a parent or something. Maybe an uncle? Like another Galran commander, Bogh, this Altean put her at some ease and made her feel welcome completely; that wasn’t to say the others made her feel unwanted, quite the contrary, but Coran seemed special.

“Can… can I stay with you tonight?” Pidge mumbled sheepishly. Growing up, if she felt nervous about anything, she would sleep with Sendak or Haxus; when she was very young, sometimes she made them sleep together so she could snuggle in between them. At camp, sometimes she would share a bed with Drek or Kullo, that or she would snuggle in against them both; it was common for kits to sleep together, keeping in close.

Coran didn’t take long to deduce that Pidge was on edge and wanted comfort. He was ready to suggest Matt, knowing that the non-paladin Earthling would love for his sister seeking him for comfort, but he didn’t want to make the mistake of making Pidge feel like she was being denied comfort or shooed away. So, behind his mustache, he smiled, his eyes softening. This little girl reminded him a bit of a much younger Allura, the princess having slept in his room a few times when she would have bad dreams or just simply struggled to sleep.

“Of course. You and your little friend here,” he gently took the Yupper’s paw and shook it, “are more than welcome to stay with me.” He was relieved to see Pidge give a subtle yet hopeful smile. He then let her go to the bed and make herself comfortable, curling up to be as small as possible, which, given her already petite form, was pretty damn small.

“Did you wish to talk about what’s wrong?” Coran inquired, sitting on the edge of the bed. Pidge grumbled something and shook her head. “Okay, well, if you feel like it, I’m all ears.” He tugged his two ears. “Well, technically I just have two ears, but I’m a good listener.” Pidge snickered at his joking; good, his plan actually worked. “Okay, well,” he pulled the sheet up over Pidge, “let’s get some sleep. We’ve got some training tomorrow as well as working on the castle.”

He watched and waited until Pidge fell asleep. Once asleep and relaxed, she stretched out more. _So, she makes herself small when scared and loosens up when calm. I see._ He thought, picking up on some of Pidge’s behaviour. He ran a gentle hand through her hair before turning out the light; as much as he wanted to keep watch, ensure that Pidge truly would be fine there, he decided it was best that he get some sleep, too.


	12. A Hope for Kolivan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kolivan, like any good parent, worries about the others. But this isn't his first time worrying since he spent fifteen years worrying for Pidge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter's a bit shorter and focuses mainly on Kolivan.

Kolivan was pacing. The group he looked after were all gone with the blue lion. He didn’t know if they had been captured or not, if they were safe or not, he didn’t know how they were. He did his best to conceal his panic, but anyone, human or Galra alike, could tell just how stressed out he was.

“I’m sure they’re fine.” Adam, a human male working for the Galaxy Garrison as well as dating Shiro, assured. “They were trained most of their lives for this.”

“It still does not change the fact that they’re all still children...” Kolivan muttered. “That’s why we were training them… they aren’t ready for this… their training is far from complete...”

“You’ve been on Earth long enough to know we humans are resilient.” Adam reminded.

“Until you aren’t… you’re a stubborn race and push yourselves….” Kolivan sighed. He then looked up quickly when Antok entered the room. “Any news?”

“Yes, sir.” Antok motioned with his tail for the Marmora leader and Earthling to follow him to another room. There, they had a communication link set up, though it was only audio.

“Alrighty then, Shiro, boss man’s here.” Chief stated.

**“Kolivan?”** Shiro spoke up.

Before Kolivan could talk, Adam went to the tech used to communicate with Shiro wherever he was. “Dammit, Takashi! What are you thinking? I know you were born on leap day, but that doesn’t make you some little kid who can gallivant anywhere and make mistakes! This is dire!” he snapped at his boyfriend. “You idiot! And letting Lance fly the blue lion ahead of time and when there is still training to be done?” He may have tried to assure Kolivan that things would be fine, but when confronting Shiro, he decided to let his frustration out. “Do you know how worried everyone was?”

Silence. There was no response.

“Takashi?” Adam blinked.

**“Yeah, you kinda broke him; good work, Adam.”** Matt teased. **“Anyway, rest assured, guys, we’re safe, fine, and have all five lions.”**

“All five?” Kolivan inquired. The other Blades in the room looked concerned but didn’t speak up.

**“You won’t believe it, Kolivan! It’s Katie! She’s alive, well, and flying the green lion; the others have been training, too, to form Voltron and get ready to fight in this war. And we met a couple Alteans in this really old castle...”** Matt trailed off as someone could barely be heard telling him to settle down. **“Right, right, anyway… Katie’s okay and she’s with us now. I mean… not right now** _ **now**_ **, she’s in another room, but...”**

**“What Matt is getting at is that we’re a full team now.”** Shiro spoke up again as he regained himself. He could be heard mumbling something to someone, a woman judging by the other voice. **“Kolivan, we’re not yet departing from Arus, our current location, but if needed, Princess Allura said she can open a wormhole in our system to bring you here.”**

Kolivan pondered it. He needed to make sure all was well, especially with Katie. With no updates, no one knew whose side she really was on. Was she an ally? Or was she their enemy? Either way, he was concerned.

“We can prepare for departure, be ready in a day.” Antok spoke softly. “That will allow us to get necessary supplies together and inform Shiro, Hunk, and Lance’s families.”

“What about Katie?” Kolivan whispered.

“We’ll need to trust the situation for the time being...”

Kolivan thought it over before nodding. “Give us a day, Shiro.” he stated. “We’ll contact you again in that time when we’re ready to depart and regroup with you.”

**“Great to hear.”** Shiro confirmed.

**“Oh! Kolivan! Can you do me a favour?”** Matt asked. **“In the top of my closet in a box, there’s a toy. Can you bring it for me? I want to finally give it to Katie. I mean, there’s other stuff for her, but the toy is most important. Oh, and maybe some clothes for her… she’s been just going around in shorts and a sleeveless top… hasn’t decided on anything else. She’s like really petite, tinier than Lance’s scrawny rear-”**

**“Matt...”** Shiro sighed. **“Anyway, size smalls… maybe extra small would work for her if you do bring clothes.”**

“We’ll definitely get supplies together.” Kolivan assured. “We’ll sign out for now; contact us if anything comes up.”

**“Will do.”** Shiro responded. **“And Adam, sorry for worrying you. I love you.”**

“I love you, too, you big idiot.” Adam smiled. “Be safe… or as safe as possible out there. I’d come up but...”

**“I know, you’ve got work on Earth, my work’s up here.”** Shiro chuckled a bit. **“Hopefully we’ll see each other soon.”**

“Hopefully.” Adam nodded.

After communications were cut, Kolivan walked out with the other Blades, giving the orders to make preparations and to inform the families of the other paladins.

“We should have informed them about Katie’s situation and to be on guard.” Krolia spoke up.

“We don’t know if she is our enemy or not; Haxus may have succeeded.” Kolivan hoped he was right about that. “We can ascertain the situation better ourselves when we arrive rather than cause any unnecessary anxiety.”

“And if she is loyal? If Haxus could not succeed?” Antok inquired.

Kolivan didn’t know how to respond to that. “Have we heard from any Blades who have occasional contact with her?”

“Thace’s last report was the last time she had been to see the druids...” Krolia responded. “He’s unsure of how things are… the druids are… they’re not normal things, as you know.”

“Indeed, and there’s no telling what Haggar would do to her on Zarkon’s command.” Kolivan sighed. He honestly did hope that nothing bad happened, but he also knew not to let his guard down. “We can hopefully figure things out.”

“Even if she is the enemy?” Antok asked. Kolivan stopped, getting the others to halt in response. “I know you don’t want to think of that, but...”

“I’ll do what I can to make sure the empire can’t use her.” Kolivan responded before leaving the other agents there. _I failed before… but I refuse to fail again._ he thought. He went to his home where he raised Matt, going to the Earthling’s room. Books, a few toys, plenty of collectibles, and an array of glow-in-the-dark stars scattered all over the walls and ceiling in between and even on some posters; it was a typical room, he learned. He then went to the closet, pulling down a box.

The box.

He remembered when Matt was younger and would pick up various things in stores with his allowance. When often asked, Matt would proudly proclaim that he was getting them for his sister. He was so confident that one day she would come home to them and he could give her those items. Sighing, Kolivan sat down on Matt’s bed and went through the box. More stars; it was almost funny. Some figurines of various fantasy creatures like unicorns, dragons, and mermaids. He then picked up a toy that was in a bag, protected from dust, light, and anything else all those years.

In the bag was a plush mermaid with a green top on it, the name _Katie_ embroidered into the shirt it wore. After the announcement of Katie’s birth, the first thing Matt wanted to do was get her a welcome home present. He was ready to spend all of his allowance on it, but Kolivan was pleased to pay for the doll, eager to see Matt present it to his baby sister.

When Katie’s disappearance was reported, though, Matt held onto it and cried before putting it away, tucking it into a bag.

_“Matt?” Kolivan asked, seeing the young boy put the toy away. “We’ll find her… I promise… so don’t give up.” He held the toy in his hands, the bag still protecting it. “I won’t give up...”_

_“I know.” Matt nodded. “I won’t give up either… I never will.” He offered a smile, though he still looked sad. His face was red from hours of crying, it was a wonder he could see past his swollen eyes. “I’m gonna protect it. Then one day, when Katie’s home, I can give it to her.”_

_Kolivan was stunned. Here this boy was, hardly seven years old, and he was so precious and kind, so hopeful and determined. It touched Kolivan’s heart._

Kolivan wiped his face, realizing a few tears fell down his fur covered cheeks. He smiled a bit. Before he he found himself on Earth and involved with the Earthlings, he all but cut himself off from his emotions. He lived a life where they were a luxury that he couldn’t afford; he still felt them, but he did not take the time to express them. Meeting the Earthlings, meeting the Holt family, he found himself expressing them more and more.

“I’ll make sure she is safe, Matt; I won’t let you lose Katie again.” Kolivan whispered, hugging the bagged toy. He smiled softly. Fifteen years. Fifteen long, agonizing years of not knowing how safe Katie truly was, worrying day after day. He would finally be able to protect her, finally see her with her big brother.

“Hmm… Matt loves peanut butter… I wonder if Katie would, too; I should get a few jars for them.” he mused before putting the doll back in the box. Nodding, he got up and took the box with him, determined to get it to Matt and Katie.


	13. A Prisoner Like the Rest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the prisoners from Sendak's ship waking up, Matt is determined to find out about his parents and hopes to find them.

“Brought you a snack.” Matt said, walking into the infirmary and sitting beside Pidge. He showed her a plate of… well… something that he considered food. Pidge looked at it, raising an eyebrow. “Yeah, I don’t know what it is, but Hunk made it and it’s a whole lot better than that goo. And whatever it was that Coran made earlier.” Pidge shrugged and tried a bite of little baked goods. Her eyes lit up and she claimed the plate from her brother, chowing down on it. Matt smiled, not minding one bit; he was glad that Pidge was actually eating something.

“We contacted the Blade of Marmora; they’re gonna be arriving tomorrow.” Matt informed Pidge. He then looked to the cryopods that she sat in front of. “I wonder if any of them may know about our parents. Or anyone else in the crew.”

Pidge shuffled a bit, tucking her feet in close. “Um… about what happened...” she mumbled. “Do… do you know anything? About when I… um...”

“I don’t know much.” Matt admitted. “All I know is Kolivan was going to arrive to pick you and our parents up, escort you guys back home to Earth.” He sighed. “But when he got there… it was too late. You were already gone, most of the crew missing… some… some were dead...” He put his arm around Pidge’s shoulders. “But you’re safe. Maybe the others are, too.”

 _Probably not… I’m… I’m special…_ Pidge thought. She then looked up when one of the pods opened up, an alien stepping out. She didn’t know what to do or how to help, but Matt was quick to spring into action, getting those they helped situated and warmed up from the cold confines of the cryopods.

Once the former prisoners were situated, Matt decided to talk with them, wanting to learn more. “Do you know how long you were held captive?” he asked one of the aliens as he finished serving them warm drinks to help them.

“It’s hard to tell anymore.” the alien responded, shaking his head. “Years for some… decades for others… maybe even longer.” He looked to Matt, a tired look having long since set into his gaze. “It’s hard to keep track of time; being a prisoner, it eventually blurs.”

“I’m sorry...” Matt spoke softly. “But you’re safe now; all of you are.” He looked to the others before back to the one he deemed the leader of that particular group; he seemed to be at least the only one ready to speak to anyone, the others still on edge and letting what happened to settle in. “In your time as a prisoner… did… did you perhaps see any Earthlings? They look like us.” He motioned to Pidge and himself.

“Earthlings...” The alien was in thought, trying to place if he had or hadn’t. “It’s been a long time… but… I do recall seeing a group of them. Yes… I don’t know long, though. There were other prisoners from different places… we were being divided up, those who could work… those who would… would fight… Some… some did not make it in the arena….”

Matt did his best to hold back the tears. More of the station’s personnel were dead. More people on Earth lost family for certain. He didn’t want to know if any of them could have been their parents.

“There was one I recall the most… she was sent away to work at a prison camp.” the alien spoke again, making Matt perk up. She? A woman? Sure, there were plenty of women among the crew, but he was still hopeful. “She was full of fire… determined to find her daughter. I didn’t know much of what she said, but I could only assume she was insulting any of our captors who walked past.”

Looking for her daughter? Insulting others? “Did anyone call her by name? Did they call her _Colleen_?” Matt inquired. “Or did she call for the name _Katie_?”

“Katie… yes… that was the name she said a lot.” the alien stated. “Her daughter called Katie…”

“That was Mom… Mom was...” Matt nodded. “Okay, that settles it!”

“Huh? Settles what?” Pidge asked, finally looking up. She was utterly confused by Matt’s surprising enthusiasm.

“Sendak’s ship! It’s bound to have data on it about prisoners. Maybe we can get it, translate it, and find our parents and the other members of the crew!” Matt was excited. “C’mon, Pidge!”

“Wait… what? Hey!” She saw Matt run off, the older male clearly eager to figure things okay. “Hey! Wait up! Matt!” She scrambled after him.

Due to the distance of the ship from where the castle was, Pidge decided the best way to get there was with the green lion. After a quick flight, they were at the crash site, seeing the heavily damaged and broken apart battleship in what was probably a large pond; some Earthlings probably would have debated on if it was a large pond or a small lake.

Staring at it, Pidge felt a wave of emotions. While a part of her tried to tell her it wasn’t truly a home, another part insisted that this was her home and that she helped to destroy it. More than that, though, she was concerned for Haxus and Sendak, not knowing if they were okay.

“C’mon, let’s see if we can find the main computer.” Matt said, taking the lead. “Just watch your step; there’s no telling what’s stable and what isn’t.”

“It’s been destroyed; even if the main computer was intact, there wouldn’t be power; if there was power, neither of us are Galra and their tech is typically sensitive to genetic coding.” Pidge reminded. _I mean, sure, I could probably work with it, but… is that… is that the right thing? Then again… his mom… our… our…_

“Well, we won’t know the outcome until we try.” Matt informed. “Besides, you worked with their tech some to open up the cell and even get that escape pod back to Arus, I think we’ll manage something.” He had a lot of faith in his sister.

They had gotten up onto the cruiser and looked for an opening that seemed secure enough and wasn’t filled with water. It took several moments, but they finally found the right opening to get in and with a quick escape route if needed.

“Okay,” Matt slid down the flooring and to the main console, “this looks like the main computer. As you predicted, though, there’s no power.” He examined it further. “But in my experience with computers, just because something lacks power doesn’t mean there isn’t stored data on it.” He procured a datapad. “So we just need to find a way to access the data and transfer it to here; we’ll sift through it later.”

Pidge blinked. She had no idea where he was keeping that datapad; she wondered if somehow there were pockets on his flight suit. Pushing that curiosity aside, she took it from him and crouched underneath the console. “If it’s possible, then, I may be able to hook this up… computers are computers in the end, so I may be able to override its security protocols to extract the data.” She opened up part of the computer and found the needed wires and plugged them into the pad. “It’ll take a bit of work, though...”

“Well, we’ve got time.” Matt assured, sitting down next to his sister. He watched her work, curious at how she learned to do that. “So… you’ve learned to hack computers? Galra tech to be exact?” Pidge bit her lip; while Matt would have seen that as a gesture of concentration, she was worried he was catching onto her. “I guess being prisoner for a while, it’s something you’d pick up on.” He smiled. “You definitely show to be a Holt; we Holts do well with picking up on skills, especially when it comes to learning and understanding new tech. Dad apparently adapted quickly to the tech the Blade of Marmora had to share when they became allies; Mom wasn’t that far behind.”

Pidge did her best to not let the other Earthling hear her sigh of relief. She found that he was so blind by his expectations and love of her that he probably wouldn’t believe she could actually harm him or anyone else if necessary. Hell, even when she retaliated and practically attacked Matt while in the green lion the other day, he acted like he understood why and comforted her instead of fully fear for his own safety.

Pidge did what she could to shake any thoughts out of her mind pertaining to having a brother and her position in the empire. Instead, she focused on getting the data extracted. She wondered if there really would be any data on her mother. To be honest, she had oftentimes been curious about who her parents were; even as a much younger child, she wondered why she was separated from her species. Abandoned? Unwanted? Simply orphaned by tragedy?

 _Taken. Stolen from your parents’ love to be used as a tool._ She grimaced. “Will you shut up?” she muttered under her breath.

“Hmm?” Matt looked over. “You say something?” he inquired. Before Pidge could come up with a response to just tell him, he looked away at a cracking sound in the sky. “What’s that?”

“Huh?” Pidge looked over. “What’s what?”

“I’ll go check.” Matt got up and checked outside, his eyes widening at something going in toward their location. “Oh shit...” He jumped back down and grabbed Pidge, pulling her back. “Pidge, we gotta scram, now!”

“Huh? What’s wrong?” Pidge inquired. She quickly disconnected the wires. “I wasn’t able to get everything.”

“That doesn’t matter; we need to go!” Matt pulled her along, getting the smallest paladin out of the ship and fleeing for the green lion. Just as something crashed into the ship, the green lion moved, sheltering the siblings from the aftermath as water, dust, and debris from the ship was flung in varying directions. “That was… close.” Matt gasped out. “Whew!” He then looked once the dust settled, seeing what had crashed. “What is that? Something from the Galra?”

Pidge didn’t even know what the coffin-like structure was. Only that it was massive, probably the size of Voltron, and it did not leave a good feeling in her gut. _If I didn’t know any better… I’d say it had to do with the druids…_ she thought to herself. She watched as the structure opened up and something entirely different and unexpected to either Holt emerge.

“What the hell is that?!” Matt exclaimed.

“I think that’s our signal to get away from here!” Pidge yelped. “C’mon!” She grabbed Matt by the arm and pulled him along, getting to the green lion’s mouth and entering. “Oi! Guys? Guys, we could use some help here!” Pidge got the lion moved, narrowly dodging the newfound enemy’s attack. _This has to be from the empire… right? Then why’s it attacking? Wait… wait… it’s after Voltron… right? Trying to capture us?_ Pidge was frantically thinking of the situation at hand all while trying to get a hold of the other paladins; with it, she got distracted enough for the creature, whatever it was, to get the jump on her, hitting her lion with a glowing orb and sending it crashing to the side. “Oof… felt that...”

“Yeah...” Matt agreed, doing his best to remain standing. He then checked his communicator. “Shiro? Keith? Allura? Anyone! We’ve got a problem!”

 **“Matt? Pidge?”** Allura asked over the comm. **“What’s wrong?”**

“Something was sent by the Galra and the green lion can’t handle it alone!” Matt reported before they got hit again. “We need Voltron!”

 **“You guys do your best to hold out!”** Allura instructed. **“The others will be there shortly.”**

“Easier said than done.” Pidge grumbled, getting hit again. “Dammit, we’re pinned!”

 **“Not for long!”** Shiro’s voice came over the comm. **“Let’s lay down some covering fire, team!”**

Pidge waited until the enemy was attacked and forced back, giving her the chance to slip out of there. “Phew, that was close...”

“Agreed.” Matt confirmed.

 **“Are you guys okay?”** Shiro inquired.

“Maybe a little banged up, Green took the brunt of it all, though, so… we’ll survive.” Pidge admitted.

 **“So… how do we defeat this thing? It’s clearly not a friendly.”** Lance spoke up. **“Like… hit it with all we’ve got? Take out its weapon? Call it names?”**

“Did he just...” Pidge gave Matt a confused look.

“That’s Lance for ya...” Matt let out a sigh.

 **“Our best bet is to form Voltron and fight it.”** Shiro stated.


	14. Warrior

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge is a warrior, trained to fight and serve the empire. But she's also a child, trying to understand everything around her and her own emotions and thoughts on the matter.

Pidge had been raised and constantly told that Voltron was the strongest thing there was in the universe. Even Zarkon admitted to what the Galra could accomplish after ten thousand years was nothing compared to the power of the massive warrior. And yet there they were… struggling.

 **“Okay, if Voltron’s so tough, how’s this thing kicking our butts?”** Hunk inquired.

 **“Well, it has been ten thousand years, so...”** Keith rationalized.

Had it really just been time and the Galra really were stronger? Had Zarkon been wrong? Pidge doubted those and felt that it was that they were still new to actually fighting in the lions and as Voltron.

 **“We’ll figure out how to deal with this monster, but for now we need to lure it away so it doesn’t harm those in the village.”** Shiro instructed.

“Village?” Matt asked. “What village?”

“A village with locals, maybe?” Pidge looked up and the two shrugged in response.

Fighting whatever the monster was was no walk in the park. As hard as they tried, they could hardly make a hit. When they would focus on the orb it threw at them, the monster would attack; if they focused on the monster, the orb would come back to it and hit them from a blind spot. Pidge, though, was doing her best to work with the others as well as find a pattern. If training taught her anything, there was almost always a pattern when it came to combat with anything and anyone.

However, finding that pattern was tricky, though not for the reasons her team would think if she brought up her plan.

A voice, distant and not her own, tried to coax her away from her fellow paladins. It tried to deter her from working with them.

 _This is the chance. Give up fighting and let this warrior take down the other paladins. Voltron does not belong to them._ It tried to coax her with as gentle of a voice as possible. _When they are defeated, Voltron will belong to Emperor Zarkon. Your emperor, the one you swore loyalty to._

 _Wait…_ Pidge thought. _Did I… did I swear it? Or was I just raised…_

_You’re loyal, don’t you forget that. You’re loyal to the emperor… your loyal to your people._

“My… p… peop…ple...”

“Pidge? Pidge, c’mon, hang in there.” Matt was as Pidge closed in on herself, curling up in her seat and holding onto her head.

 **“Pidge? Pidge, we need the shield!”** Shiro called.

 **“What’s wrong? The green lion’s seizing up!”** Keith added.

“Pidge...” Matt let out a grunt when they got hit again, doing his best to not stagger. “Pidge, the team needs you; they can’t do this without you. I know it hurts… and if I could, I’d do anything to help relieve this pain… but...” He hugged his sister. “Whatever’s wrong, you need to fight it. You need to be strong and fight this.”

“Hurts… Papa… Papa...” Pidge started crying, the pain in her head feeling like it was reaching an overwhelming sensation.

“Pidge, I know it’s scary… and I can only imagine how much it hurts… but you’re a fighter. You’re a survivor.” Matt assured. “Screw being a Holt… you’re you. You’re Pidge… you’ve survived all of these years in a hostile environment.” Without knowing the full truth, it was an assumption on his part. But he wasn’t that far off… was he? “You’ve survived that… you’ll survive this…”

_I’m strong… I’m a survivor…_

_You need to remember your place._

_My place is being the best damn warrior I can be!_ Pidge glared ahead before taking the controls again. she maneuvered them right and brought their shield up just in time to defend against the orb as it tried to smash into them. “I won’t go down without a fight.” she commented. _Victory… or…_

 **“Alright, Pidge!”** Lance praised.

 **“Just in time, good work, Pidge!”** Shiro echoed.

“And it gets better; this thing has a pattern with its attacks!” Pidge commented. “Every third throw of the orb, it needs to recharge; you’ll hear a different sound, as though it’s powering up. That’s our cue to attack; we’ve got one more before we can strike.”

 **“Whoa! You really picked up on a pattern like that?”** Hunk inquired.

 **“We can talk about Pidge’s amazing intelligence later.”** Keith pointed out.

 **“Keith’s right; let’s take defense for now!”** Shiro instructed the team.

“I knew you could pull through.” Matt said softly, a hand resting on Pidge’s shoulder. She smiled up at him before looking ahead, ready to fight as the voice slowly drifted away, her mind clearing up.

They managed to withstand another hit and struck back during their opening, but it wasn’t enough. The monster got back up and was ready to attack once more. Pidge was certainly right about the pattern, but they weren’t strong enough. At least not until Keith noticed something with the red lion.

With his bayard activating in a port withing the red lion, Keith was able to give Voltron a sword to wield. Perfect. They went back on the defensive, taking the hits the best they could. Voltron, though, weakening rapidly; their earlier struggle mixed with Pidge being unable to respond with the lion for a moment took its toll, but it wasn’t game over for the team.

First hit, they were pushed back.

Second hit, their shield was lost.

Third hit, they were knocked down.

But they were not going to stay down. They got right back up and pierced the monster through with the sword, fatally damaging it and backing off in time for it to explode.

 **“Alright! Awesome work!”** Lance praised.

 **“That was a close call! Whew!”** Hunk sounded clearly relieved.

Matt smiled at Pidge and hugged her. “You did great, Pidge.” he praised. “I’m proud of you.”

Pidge smiled fondly, loving the feeling those simple words left in her. “Thanks, Matt.” she said, grateful for his help. “I… I probably wouldn’t have done it without your support.”

“That’s what siblings do. They support each other when needed.”

-+-+-+-

“So, your creation failed.” It wasn’t a matter of question, but rather a statement of fact from Zarkon.

“And the paladin pulls even further… I thought I could...”

“No matter.” Zarkon cut Haggar off. “Sendak is still alive and on that planet; he will be able to remind her of her loyalty. He will get her to return and bring us the lions.”

“Are you certain of this, sire?” Haggar inquired. She lowered her head in submission when Zarkon directed his pupil-less glare at her.

“I personally trained Sendak myself. He will either show results and succeed… or die. In either case, we succeed in getting Voltron… or succeed in letting the weak weed themselves out.” Zarkon reminded. “And whether Pidge complies of her own will or not… she will return here in the end and be reminded of her loyalty.”

-+-+-+-

Pidge sat outside on her own, wanting fresh air and space to think. Or perhaps it was because she rarely had moments growing up to be outside. Landing on actual planets were far and few between and Sendak hardly ever let Pidge go out. She never understood why, maybe because he was protective, but she rarely had been out. This was all new and interesting to her. It was actually relaxing.

“But this won’t last forever… will it?” Pidge asked herself, looking off to see the sun starting to set as she sat on the bridge that led to the castle. Back in her sleeveless top and shorts, she kicked her bare feet back and forth. Underneath her was her Yupper, giving some comfort on the hard surface. “Either I’ll be going through space with the others… or I’ll be back on a battleship or at Central Command...” She watched the sun longer until a glint caught her attention. “Hmm?” She stood up, ready and on guard. But then in the distance she caught the familiar sight of Sendak.

“He’s… he’s okay...” Pidge’s face lit up as she looked around. No one near. Good. She snatched up her toy and ran off, heading down to a forested area. She didn’t care about the feeling of rocks or sticks trying to dig into the flesh on her feet, she was too excited. “Sendak! You’re okay!” she exclaimed, reaching him.

“It seems you have grown rather lax in this short amount of time.” Sendak commented.

“Er… I mean… Commander...” Pidge mumbled. She then made her salute. “I was concerned for your safety. Is… Is Papa...”

“Haxus is well; he’s checking some of our supplies as we speak.” Sendak responded. He first gently took the Yupper’s paw. “Perhaps it was a good thing you brought this with you instead of leaving it on the ship.” He then grabbed something from his person, handing it over to Pidge. “Take this.”

“Huh?” Pidge looked down, accepting the small object. An explosive with a remote detonation switch; Sendak still had the switch somewhere. “This is...”

“We still have a mission to take the lions back the Emperor Zarkon.” Sendak reminded. “And you having their trust will be of great use.” He looked to the castle for a moment before his gaze went back to Pidge’s. “This ship is undoubtedly powered by a crystal; put that near enough to it and when the time is right, I’ll activate it and destroy their crystal; that will power the ship down and help us get in.”

“Sure… but… if you do that, how are you getting the lions back to the emperor?” Pidge inquired. “You don’t have a ship...”

“We will; our crystal is still functional and already retrieved.” Sendak commented.

Pidge blinked and slowly nodded. “Right...” she mumbled.

“Remember not to let me down.” Sendak stated, ruffling Pidge’s hair before pulling her goggles down over her eyes. It made her giggle at the gesture and push them back up. “You’re doing well on your mission and away from us; succeeding will certainly go over well with Emperor Zarkon.”

“And… with you? And Papa?” Pidge asked. “You’ll… um...” _You’ll be proud of me?_ She didn’t want to actually say it, looking like she was purposefully seeking praise. She then looked when she heard some voices calling for her.

“Go back to them for now; continue your mission and let them think you’re their ally.” Sendak stated. “And I’m certain you won’t disappoint me. You won’t disappoint our emperor.”

“Yes sir, Commander.” Pidge nodded, though her response sounded less than eager and a little unsure, not that the proud Commander Sendak really noticed. She found a hole in her Yupper, she decided she would fix it another time, and managed to squeeze the bomb into it, hiding it away. She then ran off, returning to the others who were calling for her. When questioned about it, she simply told them that she was admiring the scenery, having never actually had many moments to see planets and the plant life they could produce.

When nightfall came and everyone turned in for bed, Pidge waited until she was certain Coran was no long making final checks. When certain, she took off, heading to the bridge of the castle where she could see the crystal hanging above. She managed to find her way up there and applied the bomb to the base of the crystal and where no one would notice it. If they didn’t think to look for it, which she doubted they would, they would never see it.

“This… this is my mission...” she mumbled when she got down and hid all signs that she had been up by the crystal. She sighed and left the room, carrying her Yupper with her. She didn’t know if she really wanted this; for the first time in a long time, she felt like she could breathe. But she was a proud member of the Galran empire. She was loyal to Zarkon.

She was conflicted and it scared her more than the occasional bout of fear she felt with the empire. On edge and nervous, she decided she didn’t want to sleep alone. She could have chosen Coran, she liked his company, but she decided not to. She had someone else in mind.

Matt was curled up in his bed, fast asleep. At least until he felt something shuffle against him. At first he was startled awake before realizing that this was his sister who entered his room and even his bed. “Huh? Pidge?” Matt inquired, realizing just how small this figure was. Pidge didn’t speak as she snuggled in closer with her Yupper. “Pidge, you okay?” No response.

Matt worried something was wrong with her, but decided not to pry. Instead, he put his arm over her. “Okay, you can sleep in here then.” he said, a smile showing up on his lips. He always envisioned perfect older brothers being their for their younger siblings. He figured she was still coming to terms with things, so he decided to be the best older brother he could imagine and hug her as she drifted off to sleep.

“I’m glad to have you here.” he whispered softly before letting sleep claim him again, the happy feeling of finally having a sibling sleepover with his little sister filling him.


	15. "I'm sorry..."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kolivan arrives at the castle and is both happy to see Pidge but also worried about where she stood in all of this. All the while, a plan is put into motion.

Pidge visibly winced when she saw the four other paladins and her older brother each get smacked upside their heads by a female Galra wearing some sort of armor. She knew a scolding when she saw one and this particular Galra didn’t even speak yet; one glare and the boys lined up, accepting whatever punishment they seemed to have earned.

Krolia crossed her arms after smacking the boys. “You five are still just kits! Children! And you run off with the blue lion without verification or at least telling us what was going on? And to just disappear like that and out of our scans’ capabilities? Do you know how worried we were? What if you got hurt or killed? What if you got yourselves captured?!”

“Captured is worse than killed, Mom? Really?” Keith inquired before getting smack again. “Ow! Mom!” He gently touched the side of his head, hoping massaging it some would help soothe the spot.

“How many times do I need to tell you? If you’re captured, you will be tortured and face pain you wouldn’t even wish upon your greatest enemies. It will make you beg for death.” Krolia reminded not only Keith, but the other four with him. “And most won’t be merciful to just kill you on the spot.”

When Kolivan, Krolia, and Antok arrived to deliver supplies and check on the group, Pidge really did not expect the others to be lectured. However, the response was not unwarranted. Even she knew that not following orders and being reckless always meant there would be consequences.

“Well,” Allura cleared her throat, “it’s… it’s nice to meet you. And I do apologize for not getting in touch sooner. Please, try not to be too hard on them.”

“Says the princess that was merciless on us with training?” Hunk muttered to Lance, getting the blue paladin to snicker. Pidge found herself wincing again when Allura smacked them both in the backs of their heads.

“Anyway,” Matt spoke up, flinching just in case someone decided to get him, “can we move on to something far more important? Or rather someone?” He motioned to Pidge, the green paladin fidgeting a bit now that the spotlight was shifted to her.

Kolivan didn’t miss seeing Pidge, though admittedly he almost did; she was so small and lingered behind the others, but he had been keeping watch in order to see her somewhere with the group. He was quiet as he approached the girl before gently resting a hand on her shoulder. “I’m glad you’re safe.” he said as he lowered himself down on one knee, being closer to the youngest team member’s height. He moved his hand to Pidge’s cheek, a sad smile on his face. “I’m sorry I couldn’t keep you safe… that I couldn’t get there in time.” he told her. “But seeing you here… seeing you now...”

Pidge let out a surprised yelp when she was pulled into a hug. Kolvan mumbled something, she thought she heard him constantly apologize. But what for? It confused her. But then she realized that he couldn’t get somewhere in time. Was he supposed to get her before she was separated from her parents? Did he originally plan to bring her home to be raised with the others?

“It’s okay… I’m safe...” Pidge mumbled, resting her head against him and letting him hug her more. He was no Haxus, but the hug was still comforting.

“I understand how heartfelt this is and I do honestly hate to butt in,” Allura spoke up, “but we do have a few final preparations to make; we’re hoping to launch tomorrow now that the castle is in order.”

Kolivan looked to the princess, ready to challenge her on that. The paladins were still children and needed time to prepare and train for perhaps years before they would be ready. But this was a war and they already found themselves in it.

“I suppose you are right.” Kolivan stood up, keeping close to Pidge and gently running his claws through her hair; he smiled softly when he saw just how relaxed she looked at that. “With your permission, for the time being at least, I would like myself, Krolia, and Antok to remain on board and assist however possible, especially with the paladins.”

Allura nodded with a smile. “Of course. You three are very welcome here.”

-+-+-+-

Allura was seeing to a few final touches to not only prepare them for the launch the next day, but also for a celebration she planned on holding, deciding to allow the Arusians, the local inhabitants of the planet, to visit the castle and celebrate. It was during the princess’ work that Kolivan found her and decided to voice his concerns.

Though happy to see Pidge, Kolivan could not yet determine if she was their ally or not. He did not know what her intentions were or how successful Haxus was in keeping her on a certain path. Hard as he may have tried, with the druids also working with her on occasion, it was impossible to tell right away how things were going. He felt it was safest to warn Allura, especially with a party and departure being planned.

“Kolivan, right?” Allura inquired. “May I assist you with something?”

“I feel there is something important to discuss with you.” Kolivan commented. “May I have a moment of your time? Preferably alone.”

Allura was confused, but she nodded and walked off with the Marmora leader. “You seem troubled.”

“I am.” Kolivan sighed. “Princess Allura, have the others told you anything about Katie...er… Pidge?” He was so used to calling her _Katie_ in his mind, it would take some time to get used to the name she had known all her life.

“Only that she had gone missing… taken from her family.” Allura sighed. “She doesn’t talk about it, though, so we don’t know much more...” She fixated Kolivan with a concerned gaze. “Is… there more to it?”

“I do not want you to overreact, we do not yet know how things fully are with her, but there is a chance that she may not fully be our ally.” Kolivan tried to break it to Allura as gently as possible, but some things were better handled like taking off a band-aid. “She had been raised in the empire, though one of our agents have been trying to help look after her, sway her in the right direction. On top of that, there’s no telling what the druids, beings with magic who serve Zarkon, had done to her as well.”

Allura was silent, a look of hurt and concern etched onto her face. Hearing this from Kolivan, she felt that some things made sense. From Pidge’s quick hostility to her bitterness of feeling like a prisoner. “How do you suggest we go about this?” she inquired.

“Just to keep an eye on her for the time being without letting her feel we distrust her or anything.” Kolivan suggested. “For now, I’ll do what I can to find out about her position in all of this. Hopefully Haxus was able to pull through, but… Sendak was also involved. Having two people raise a child, one a rebel and the other loyal to the empire...”

“Pidge must feel so confused…” Allura sighed. “But… I think she will understand better and even show to be on our side.” She offered Kolivan a smile. “Don’t think of me as naïve, but rather hopeful; I think being among the paladins and especially her brother is good for her. I think she’s really showing to like them all.”

“I certainly hope that is the case.” Kolivan nodded. “For now, though, could you please keep what I told you to yourself? I do not wish to cause any further stress or alarm for the others; they have gone fifteen years without her… I don’t want to ruin what bonds they’re already developing...”

“I understand.” Allura nodded. “Thank you, Kolivan, for letting me know.”

-+-+-+-

A party. A large gathering of people. And honestly, Pidge hated it. She hated large groups with a passion. She remembered training camp and going to the arena with her group and how much she hated the crowd she was in; it was almost as bad as watching the fights and she just wanted to get the hell out of there. This was why Pidge found herself in the ship bay, the doors open and her working on one of the Altean pods.

To occupy herself and to ease some of her nerves, sometimes Pidge would find herself working on varying forms of tech. Whether she was overriding the software in the sentries, reprogramming the drones, or messing with small ships, she kept herself busy, focused, and entertained in her own way. It was a skill only a few kits in her age group had at their young ages and it made for interesting times. She remembered having a competition with one of her bunkmates to see who could better improve a fighter ship. It didn’t go well since they both caused something to blow up and their overseeing commander had long since been fed up with their group.

“What’s so funny?” Matt asked, walking over to where Pidge was working, his hands behind his back as he kept an object hidden.

“Mm… just thinking of stuff… nothing important.” Pidge shrugged her shoulders. She didn’t want to tell Matt of her training days with other Galrans. She then tried to look around him. “What’s that?”

“In due time.” Matt chuckled. He looked to the doors. “Let’s step out for some fresh air, okay?”

“Yeah, I could use some; apparently those doors don’t allow a breeze to come despite being open.” Pidge sighed and jumped down from the pod. She walked out ahead of Matt, her brother motioning for her to go first. “Hmm… it feels nice out here.”

“It does.” Matt smiled. “It reminds me of home.”

“Home...”

“Earth.” Matt looked up at the sky. “It’s a lot like this planet, though with more cities and light pollution in many areas. Of course, we were living out in the desert and away from cities, so the night skies were just as beautiful.” He looked back at Pidge. “Hopefully we can return there soon so you can see it.”

“Y-yeah...” Pidge mumbled. She then found something plush shoved into her face. “What? Pffft!” She sputtered a bit. “What’s this…?” She pulled away some and took hold of the stuffed mermaid. She squished it a little, feeling how soft it was. “This is… what you picked out for me?”

“Mm-hmm.” Matt nodded. “When our parents announced your birth and the mark on your arm, Kolivan and I went shopping since I wanted a _welcome home_ gift for you.”

Pidge’s eyes started to water. She then traced her fingers over the embroidered letters on the toy. “What does this say? I don’t understand it...” Of course she didn’t. While she could actually read and speak a few different languages, especially Galran and the few dialects that language had, the Earthling’s English language was not one she could read.

“Katie. It says _Katie_. Your name.” Matt stated. “See?” He gently traced each letter. “K. A. T. I. E. Katie.”

“Kay… tee...” Pidge sounded out. She looked at the toy more as the tears welled up further and even fell down her face. Seeing this, Matt looked worried.

“Pidge? Pidge, what’s wrong?” Matt put his hands on her shoulders, ready to hug and comfort her. At first he would think she was crying tears of happiness, but she looked and sounded far from happy. Something, he knew, was wrong.

“I’m sorry… I’m so terribly sorry!” Pidge coughed out, trying to wipe her face without getting tears and mucus on the toy. “I’m sorry… please… please don’t hate me...”

“Hate you? Pidge, I would never hate you.” Matt assured. “What’s wrong? You can tell me.” But before Pidge could say anything, the older of the two jumped at a sudden noise. An explosion. He looked to the castle, seeing the power shut down. “What was...” He looked to Pidge who was still crying. He wanted to ask what she did, but he didn’t want to blame her. “C’mon, Pidge, let’s go check what happened!” he told her, carefully taking her arm. He waited until she was ready to move before he ran inside.

He knew something was wrong and he was tragically certain that his own sister caused it. But she didn’t want to, right? She was so visibly upset. When they reached the bridge, where the explosion occurred, he was shocked to see the crystal destroyed, Coran scraped up and sore… and Lance unconscious and bleeding from a head wound.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keep in mind, it is not always right to smack someone upside the head when they speak out of turn or are complete idiots. However, this is in fictional writing, so... let the head smacking occur!   
> The headslaps actually come from thinking of Gibbs smacking diNozzo all the time in NCIS.


	16. (Not) Full of Pride

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The castle has been attacked and trouble ensues. Sendak is certain he's won... but Pidge doesn't know if they truly won... or if she (is) lost.

Pidge felt a part of her heart break and another part remind her that this was what must be done. She couldn’t help but stare at Lance as Shiro helped to support him, the black paladin trying to get him conscious again. Lance, though, wasn’t stirring. He could hardly even make a sound of discomfort.

“This is bad.” Shiro commented. “He needs medical treatment.”

“Can’t we use those pods like we did with the prisoners we helped?” Matt asked, a hopeful gaze settling on the princess.

“With the crystal destroyed, the castle has no power, not even an emergency supply for the pods...” Allura admitted. As if the situation couldn’t get any worse, the leader of the Arusians came to the group, announcing that their village was under attack.

Without power, the lions were locked in their hangers and Lance was without proper medical treatment. Coran, though, could only think of one option: a new crystal.

“But we don’t have any ships outside the castle...” Coran commented.

“Wait a minute! The bay doors were open; Pidge and I stepped out for fresh air.” Matt spoke up. “We can get a pod out that way.”

“Good thinking. And I can use a pod to scan for a nearby Balmera, too.” Coran praised. “Hunk, I’ll need your help in getting a crystal.”

“Right.” Hunk nodded in confirmation. He then ran off with Matt and Coran.

“I’ll go check the Arusian village.” Keith informed the others.

“Antok, go with him.” Kolivan ordered.

“Yes, sir.” Antok nodded.

“I’ll go with.” Allura spoke up. “My being here has brought harm to the Arusians; it is my responsibility to make sure they’re okay.” With no one telling the princess to stay behind, she took off with Keith and Antok. This left Kolivan, Krolia, Shiro, and Pidge with a very unconscious Lance; odds were Matt would return to them.

“There is a chance the enemy could be near.” Kolivan rationalized, doing his best not to assume Pidge right away. He couldn’t rule her out, though, not until she did show her cards in the war. “Krolia and I will check around, make sure they do not ambush us if they are around.”

“Right; I’ll keep an eye on Lance with Pidge.” Shiro confirmed. “We can watch the front entrance, too.”

Kolivan didn’t know if this was best, but he didn’t want to make Shiro suspicious of Pidge. Nonetheless, he still permitted it, hoping that the black paladin’s training would keep him on his toes. Just because Pidge was small and born to be their ally didn’t mean he should let his guard down.

Shiro picked Lance up carefully and got him moved to the front hall where he laid him out. “Don’t worry, buddy, we’ll get you help.” he assured.

As Pidge watched Lance, she felt that tug again. A part of her screamed at her, wanting her to do something to help him. _But this… this is how it is…_ she thought. _I’m a loyal member of the Galran empire… to serve my emperor, sacrifices must be made… but… aren’t they like Drek and Kullo? Aren’t they my friends?_

Pidge shook her head, the pain starting back up. She felt so conflicted, torn between the paladins she was starting to see as her friends, family even, and her loyalty to the empire.

_Remember your place in the empire,_ that little voice told her, _remember that you are a proud member of this empire and you owe your loyalty to Emperor Zarkon._ Pidge made a small whimpering noise. This caught Shiro’s attention.

“Pidge? Pidge, are you okay?” Shiro asked, going over to the smallest team member. He checked on her, seeing how she was holding her head. “Pidge, deep breaths. It’ll be fine.”

“Sh-Shiro...” Pidge stammered. She managed to look around him a bit, seeing movement as Sendak approached.

Noticing Pidge’s gaze shift, Shiro glanced back. “Shit.” he swore, standing up full and turning around. “Pidge, go over by Lance. Now.” he ordered. Pidge silently complied, standing out of the way. “Sendak. I should’ve guessed you were somehow behind this. It was too good to be true thinking you went down in that crash.”

“Stand aside, little paladin.” Sendak nearly snarled. “I’ll be taking this castle.”

“Like hell you will.” Shiro drew his sword, readying himself for an inevitable fight.

“Do you really wish to pick a fight with me?” Sendak inquired. With the lack of a visible pupil, Shiro actually couldn’t tell that Sendak glanced at Pidge, conveying a silent message to her. “So be it.” Without waiting for Shiro, he charged first, ready to strike.

Shiro may have been significantly shorter than Sendak, but he and the others had been trained against Galra when taught how to fight in close combat. Kolivan often reminded them growing up that most of their foes they would one day fight would be bigger than them, as was natural for most Galrans. To prepare them, he would have them train against other members of the Blade of Marmora, feeling that would best prepare them. And honestly, it probably would have worked.

But there was a problem.

Pidge’s mind clicked and not in the direction Kolivan would have hoped. Seeing Sendak fight Shiro, it reminded her more and more of her loyalty to the empire and to her emperor. And to her family that raised her. Shiro was so invested in his fight against Sendak that he didn’t even notice Pidge drawing her weapon and readying herself. Before Haxus could do anything, even compromise his position, Pidge went at Shiro, slamming her bayard into the black paladin’s face and causing it to discharge and electrocute him.

Shiro let out a pained cry as he fell back, his face burning and bleeding from the attack. Before he could open his eyes, which he squeezed shut in his suffering state, he felt himself get tied up and electricity course through him. He tried to shake off the shock as it wore off.

“Tsk, tsk, Shiro.” Shiro’s eyes widened at the voice. He looked back to see it had been Pidge. “You should really have known better than to turn your back on anyone.” Pidge smirked at him. “You never know where an enemy may lurk.”

“P-Pidge?” Shiro asked. “No… No!” He glared at Sendak, not wanting to blame the girl for the decision that was made. “What’d you do to her you sick son of a-”

“I only raised her to be a loyal and proud member of the empire.” Sendak walked over and knelt in front of Shiro. With his biological hand, he gripped the Earthling’s face some from under the chin. “And she has truly proven herself.” He stood up. “And thanks to Pidge, Voltron is now ours.”

Pidge smiled, looking pleased to hear that. At least until she looked past the commander and saw Haxus’ worried expression. That made her smile fall as she wondered about that. _Wouldn’t… wouldn’t Papa be proud of me?_ She thought to herself, feeling a little hurt. _I thought Papa…_

In the upper level of the castle, looking down upon the others, Matt was kneeling with Kolivan behind him, the Galra’s hand covering the Earthling’s mouth, keeping him silent. Kolivan had gotten there too late to do anything and he saw how Pidge acted, both to subdue Shiro and how she looked at Haxus. He then noticed Haxus glance up at him while Sendak’s back was turned and Pidge was properly restraining Shiro. Then came a subtle nod. Kolivan nodded in response and took off with Matt, pulling him along.

“Get the crystal hooked up.” Sendak ordered when they had moved to the bridge, Lance and Shiro pulled along.

“Um, sir?” Pidge spoke up, getting Sendak’s attention. “I understand that this needs to be powered up… but… I don’t know. Altean tech is so different from Galra tech; it may not be compatible and cause problems.”

“We’ll be out of here and back at Central Command long before it would become an issue.” Sendak assured.

“Right...” Pidge nodded and moved to help get the crystal set up, powering up the castle and causing the bright blue lights to turn on, though they looked purple instead. “Great… more purple.” she muttered, pulling down her goggles.

“Fifteen deca-phoebs and you still whine about it.” Sendak made a small, surprisingly amused snort. “Haxus, patch us through to Emperor Zarkon.”

“Yes, sir.” Haxus nodded slowly and did as told. He couldn’t blow his cover, not yet. He still had to do something to help Pidge realize what she was doing. He honestly hoped Kolivan had a plan; he hoped they could do something, but he knew that they may need to delay helping Pidge, too. It was troubling.

Before long, communications were established and Zarkon showed up on the screen.

“Emperor Zarkon, we have successfully claimed the castle; it won’t be long before we are able to depart and bring Voltron to you.” Sendak reported.

**“This news is most pleasing.”** Zarkon responded. **“And I see our green paladin is with you.”**

“Pidge proved to be vital in ensuring we could accomplish our task.” Sendak declared, a sense of pride in his voice as he spoke highly of the girl. “Without her, we would be further delayed.”

**“Brilliant work, Pidge. Vrepit Sa.”**

“Vrepit Sa.” Pidge responded, performing the Galran salute next to Sendak as he did the same. The communication was cut. She then looked to Shiro who watched her with sad eyes. Betrayal? No… concern. _Why is he so concerned? Wouldn’t the feeling of being betrayed be more logical?_ Pidge thought to herself, confused by the black paladin’s expression.

“Pidge… please… this isn’t you.” Shiro begged softly. “You’re a part of our team. You’re our friend. And what about Matt?” He watched Pidge closely, hoping for any reaction showing she was still the Pidge they felt they were getting to know. “Please, you know deep inside that this isn’t right. This...” He was cut off by Sendak gripping him with his prosthetic hand, sending volts of electricity through him.

“Take a look, little paladin.” Sendak growled. “She isn’t the girl you thought you knew. She knows her place, she knows who to answer to.” He looked over at Pidge, her sad gaze hidden behind her goggles. “She’s a loyal soldier and you won’t be able to sway her.”

“Pidge...” Shiro grumbled before another volt of electricity went through him. He then collapsed once Sendak let him go.

“Judging by his armor, he’s most likely the black paladin.” Sendak deduced, judging solely on the colour. “It would be best to dispose of him; Voltron doesn’t need two black paladins.”

“Commander...” Pidge spoke up, stepping forward, “perhaps… perhaps...” _Show mercy. Show Shiro mercy!_ “Perhaps he’ll be of use still?”

“Of use?” Sendak inquired.

“For… for information. Or the arena…” Pidge mumbled. Her head still faced Sendak, but her eyes darted away. No. She didn’t want that life for him. But how could she asked for Sendak to show mercy?

Sendak watched her closely before sighing. He could tell a bit that she did want to show mercy, that somehow these other Earthlings got to her to some degree. “We’ll let Emperor Zarkon decide his fate.” he stated, at least giving Pidge that much. He went over to her and pulled her close, practically covering her head with his fur covered hand. “You’ve done well, Pidge. But our mission isn’t complete until we take the lions back. After that, you can rest.” He looked down at her, getting her to look up. Then came a gentle smile, a look seldom few have ever witnessed and even fewer have received. “I’m proud of you.”

Pidge did her best to smile, but she didn’t feel happy; she loved hearing how proud Sendak was of her, but this time felt so different. _W_ _hy does my heart hurt so much from this?_ _Isn’t this… didn’t I want this?_ The thought was but a whisper in the back of her mind, the sensation making her want to cry. She felt thankful that her goggles were in place and covering her eyes, otherwise she didn’t know what she would do if Sendak saw tears fall down her face.


	17. Breaking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone reaches a breaking point, but for Pidge, where do the pieces break apart... and where do they get mended back together? As time goes on, the Blade of Marmora agents work to take the castle back while Shiro hopes to talk sense into Pidge. It would be naive to think that anything would be easy, though.

Matt was in disbelief. His own sister attacked Shiro? Attacked their teammate? Their friend?! He wanted to ask why, but he felt that the answer would be too complicated to give in a short amount of time. A part of him probably already knew the answer anyway.

“She… she didn’t want me to hate her.”

“Matt?” Kolivan looked back at the younger male.

“Pidge… she begged for me not to hate her. And she kept apologizing.” Matt looked visibly upset, but he did his best to actually not break down. “We can’t blame her… I’m sure whatever she’s doing, she doesn’t want to deep inside. I think she’s hurting from all of this, but… but...”

Kolivan rested a hand on Matt’s shoulder and offered a gentle smile. “I’m sure a great part of her doesn’t want to help Sendak take the lions, too.” he assured. “But there’s still a part of her mind that’s most likely still loyal.”

“Did… did the agent fail to help her?”

“I don’t think Haxus fully failed… I think there’s more to it than meet’s the eye.” Kolivan stated. Honestly, he was certain it had something to do with the druids. They had a horrifying way of messing with others, completely breaking them. And with Pidge being raised by the empire, it wouldn’t be that they would need to break her, but they would find their own twisted ways to keep her on a certain path. “We won’t be giving up on her. But before we can help her, we need to make sure that Sendak does not get the castle to launch; Haxus will only be able to do so much from his end until he can separate himself from them.”

“And how do we go about that?” Matt asked.

One of Kolivan’s ears gave a single twitch in slight agitation at not having a plan. He didn’t know the castle enough to know how to work with it. But soon he heard Antok getting in touch with him through the comm he had in place on his armor. He was patched through to Allura who was on the outside of the castle, locked out with Keith and Antok by the castle’s particle barrier; of course Sendak would think to have that in place. However, they weren’t helpless.

Kolivan listened to Allura’s instructions to delay the launch sequence. Once he was told what to do, he headed down to the main engine with Matt, the two ready to work. Having connected to their communications and listened in, Krolia met up with them.

“We’ve got a problem.” Krolia looked into the console as she knelt beside it. “This ship’s ready to launch, there’s too much interference to contact the princess… and I can’t read Altean.”

“I guess it wasn’t exactly an elective growing up, was it?” Matt joked a bit.

“Matt...” Kolivan snarled, finding that they had no time for the Earthling’s jokes. “We need to shut it down, though...”

“Hmm...” Matt had his staff on his person and nodded. He readied the weapon and jammed it into the console, doing more than just shorting it out. It caused a massive shockwave that knocked the three back, the human almost tumbling off the catwalk with his smaller size and less mass; Kolivan grabbed hold of him before he could careen over the edge. “It worked. Ow...”

“Matthew Holt, never do that again!” Kolivan growled before sighing. “But… good work. We bought ourselves some time.”

“Sendak will want it fixed soon.” Krolia looked up to the security camera she noticed, certain it was still functional and Sendak was most likely watching them now. Having lived on Earth long enough, she learned plenty of Earthling phrases, insults, and gestures; call it childish if you must, but she proudly stuck her middle finger up at the camera, not caring if Sendak knew what it meant or not.

“He’ll most likely send Haxus.” Kolivan rationalized.

-+-+-+-

“Dammit!” Sendak slammed his fist down on the control panel he stood in front of. He knew that the group, which he watched on the security footage, had aimed to keep them from launching the castle. And without the engine functioning, he would fail the mission. “Haxus, do you think you can fix it?” he inquired, knowing full well that his lieutenant had worked on plenty of ships.

“I would know more once I go over it personally, but I most likely can.” Haxus stated. “It would prove to be quicker if I had an assistant, though. The Altean tech is far narrower than what we have and I may not be able to maneuver around the smaller spaces well.” He hoped that Sendak would allow Pidge to go with him. Perhaps if he did, he could keep her separated until they could handle the situation. Or perhaps, he hoped, he could even help her realize what she was doing.

Sendak looked to Pidge, the girl simply sitting and holding the plush toy Matt gave her. Though a strict commander who would rather have Pidge continue her work, he felt that she was exhausted. Had he been working with any other soldier, he would have perhaps considered it, but Pidge was still a kit, even to the proud commander. “She will remain here to rest some and help keep an eye on our prisoners.” he informed. “Now, get to work.”

Haxus knew better than to argue too much. So, he decided to comply. “I’ll do what I can.” he simply said before dismissing himself, heading through the halls. He made his way through, being cautious as he did so. At least until he turned a corner and quickly drew his blade from his hip, putting it to someone’s throat.

They had put their weapon to his just as quickly.

“Haxus.” Krolia let out a sigh of relief as she withdrew her weapon.

“I don’t know what gesture you did, Krolia, but I do assume it was rude.” Haxus smirked as he relaxed. “Kolivan.”

“Of Pidge?” Kolivan inquired.

“With Sendak; he feels she’s exhausted.” Haxus responded. “And she probably is… I think she’s showing signs of conflict from her empire influenced upbringing and her own morals.” He let out a sigh. “I’m sorry for not being able to properly help her… or to get her away from the empire.”

“You did your best.” Kolivan nodded. “And we will help her. For now, though, we need to stop and apprehend Sendak.”

“I agree.” Haxus nodded. He poked part of his armor. “Though perhaps a change of attire first? I know it’s not important, but...”

-+-+-+-

Pidge just wanted to close her eyes and sleep. A part of her wished for sleep and to wake up and have everything that happened to be a bad dream. But what entailed everything? Being taken from her family? Being raised in the empire? Meeting Matt? Hurting Lance and Shiro? She didn’t know what to do anymore; her mind was running in circles, as though she had two inner selves arguing about what was right and what her duty was.

It wasn’t until she heard Shiro grumble as he regained consciousness that she was pulled from her thoughts. She didn’t pay him any mind until Sendak said he was stepping out of the bridge for a moment and Shiro decided then to talk to her.

“Pidge… Pidge, I know somewhere in there you don’t want to do this. You know it’s wrong.” Shiro tried to get through to her. “If Zarkon gets his hands on these lions, he could truly conquer the entire universe.” Pidge scoffed and looked away from him. “He will have Matt taken from you. Your family…”

“Family...” Pidge mumbled. She slowly looked over and lifted her goggles up to see him clearly. “Mom and Dad…”

“Were taken… yes… but surely Matt already told you, right? After you found out you were siblings?” Shiro asked. “Pidge, you-” Shiro let out a shout as Sendak’s mechanical hand went right for him and grasped him, sending electricity through his body once more. “You can’t… hide the… truth from… her...” he whimpered.

“Be silent.” Sendak shoved Shiro away.

Hide the truth? Did Sendak really know anything about her and her family? Pidge watched him for a moment before sighing. “Commander...”

“Hmm?” Sendak looked over. “Don’t listen to this pest.” he said, shooting one last glare at Shiro before going to the computer console, checking security footage. Pidge wanted to ask him questions, especially about how she was found and if her parents were even there, but something caught the commander’s attention. “What?” he hissed. Hearing the frustrated alarm, Pidge got up, setting her stuffed mermaid on the floor, and ran over. “That traitor!”

Pidge looked at the footage and saw Haxus run past with the others. In the video, she could see he wore the same armor as the Blade of Marmora agents she met. An agent. He had to have been the agent Matt mentioned, right?

“I can go and find him, figure out what the meaning of this is.” Pidge declared.

“No.” Sendak snarled. “We’ll worry about that traitor later; for now, we need to get this ship to launch.” He looked to Pidge. “Do not stray; go to the engine room and get things set and functioning again. We’ve been given our mission and we will see it through.”

“Yes, sir.” Pidge nodded. She moved to leave the bridge.

“And Pidge,” Sendak’s words caused her to stop, “if he does show up, do not bother to try and reason with him. A traitor is a traitor and must be dealt with immediately.” Pidge swallowed the metaphorical lump in her throat. That meant Sendak expected her to fight Haxus if need be. But could she? “Remember, you’re a proud member of this empire. Serve it as intended.”

“Yes… sir.” Pidge nodded before taking off.

-+-+-+-

“She’s not in the bridge.” Haxus managed to get into the security system for the castle, checking for where Sendak and Pidge were to be certain.

“What?” Kolivan was concerned. “Where...”

“I’m checking.”

“What if she’s down in the engine room?” Matt inquired. “That’s where we managed to stop the launch...”

“It’s worth a check.” Haxus went through the footage, hoping to find that room. And he did. Pidge was indeed there and working so they could resume the launch. “She’s definitely there and getting to work.” He looked to Kolivan. “She needs to be stopped… as does Sendak.” he stated. “I know more about her than anyone else… I know what she’s endured. I can try and get through to her.”

“I want to help.” Matt spoke up. “This is my sister we’re talking about… if there is any way I could help her… bring her back from this...”

Kolivan was contemplating their options and choices. Sendak was indeed a bigger threat, but while Pidge was acting as their enemy, she was dangerous in her own special way and no one knew that more than Haxus. “Matt, if she engages you in a fight, I need you to try and stay out of it; you’ve never had to be put in such a situation...” Kolivan spoke softly. He didn’t know how Matt would respond on a mental level to fighting his sister and he didn’t want to push him to it. Honestly, he didn’t want the siblings to fight each other in general. “But go with Haxus… if you can talk Pidge out of this, do so. If not… Haxus, you can subdue her, right?”

“It’ll be tough, she knows most of my techniques due to training together, but I will do my best.” Haxus assured. “Either way, I refuse to give up on her.”

“Good.” Kolivan nodded. “It’d be unwise to take on Sendak at the moment…”

“We can work on disabling the particle barrier; if it’s taken down, we’ll have Antok as our backup.” Krolia reminded. She didn’t mention Keith because he was still a kid and, if possible, she didn’t want him fighting Sendak; she also refrained from mentioning Allura, not knowing what the princess was capable of.

With their plans in motion, the group split, heading to their destinations. Since Matt had already been to the engine room, Haxus had him lead the way. Once they arrived, though, he instructed the Earthling to try and keep back and safe. He then entered the massive room, looking to see Pidge at the console and conversing with Sendak as they tried to get things up and running from their separate locations.

“That’s enough, Pidge.” Haxus called out to her. “You don’t need to fight anymore. You don’t need to side with the empire.” He jumped out of the way and into one of the railings on the catwalk; with how hard he hit with his speed, he was grateful that it was sturdy and didn’t give way. He then looked to see that Pidge shot her bayard at him.

“Pidge! Stop it!” Matt called out to his sister, hoping she’d listen.

“Please… please don’t interfere.” Pidge begged. “I don’t want to fight either of you… and… I don’t want to betray Sendak… betray the empire...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one took a moment to type. I had to take an overhaul on the chapter and rework parts of it since my original attempt eventually found its way to me not liking it. So! Hopefully this version turned out better; personally I like it, but... well, I hope you guys enjoyed.


	18. Waking Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haxus and Matt refuse to give up on Pidge, wanting to help her however they can. Pidge, though, faces a lot of internal turmoil, trying to gain control of herself.

“Just… just please leave. I don’t want to fight either of you… I don’t want you two turned over to Emperor Zarkon… so...” Pidge recalled the blade part of her bayard, the tether pulling it in as she readied herself for a fight.

“Haxus...” Matt spoke softly, concern in his eyes as the agent drew his blade.

“Don’t worry, I won’t hurt her.” Haxus assured. “Pidge, one more time. You don’t need to do this. I know this isn’t something you want in the end; you’re hurting and conflicted.”

_He’s wrong. He’s wrong._ That little voice spoke in Pidge’s mind. _He’s the one who turned on the empire. Turned on Sendak. Turned on you. He left you behind._

“Pidge, it’s going to be fine. Just lower your weapon and we can get this worked out; we can stop Sendak and keep the lions safe.” Haxus slowly approached the girl he saw as his own daughter. Both his worry and his caution rose, though, as he saw Pidge hold her head, mumbling to herself; his more sensitive ears were able to pick up that she was muttering for something or someone to _shut up_. The way she held her head was concerning for he knew she was having one of those headaches again.

Having taken care of Pidge for so long, he knew those headaches well enough. He knew they started getting worse the more she had been taken to the druids and reached a whole new level when that white streak showed up. He wanted nothing more than to protect her, to keep her safe.

“Pidge, just look at me, okay? We’re going to handle this.” Haxus reminded in that gentle voice he raised her with. When Pidge was much younger and scared, it was usually his voice she would come out of hiding for and instantly want to be hugged. “I just want to help, but to do that, we need to stop this.” He motioned around him. “We can’t let this castle launch and be taken to Zarkon.”

“Pa… pa...” Pidge whimpered. _Fight. Fight! FIGHT!_ Pidge had looked terrified at first, but her gaze shifted as a slight purplish glow showed in her eyes.

“Shit...” Haxus hissed. “Okay, looks like we’re doing this the hard way.” He braced himself when he saw Pidge dart at him, ready to attack. She may have been small, but she was quick on her feet when determined. She may have been young and small, but she was training to be a warrior; even then, she already had the makings of a warrior and some would even say she was better at it than some of the other Galra in the empire.

Using his blade, Haxus was able to shield himself from Pidge’s attack. He took up the defensive, not wanting to risk harming the small paladin. He knew she wasn’t in full control and it was that glow in her eyes that told him. For a while, there had been a tinge that seemed to come and go, seeming to always be in sync with her moods, but this was the most it had been seen, telling the Blade agent that this was definitely Haggar’s doing.

“Pidge, you need to come to your senses.” Haxus called, blocking another attack. He tried to maneuver himself right so he could restrain her, but she was agile, able to dodge him and jump right back in to attack. “Is this really what you want?” He went for the next best move he could and actually knocked Pidge back, hitting her with the broad side of his weapon.

Matt was left to watch their fight, worried, maybe even terrified, by the cold look in Pidge’s eyes. He didn’t want his sister to be like this and he was certain this wasn’t the true Pidge. While some perhaps would have questioned who the true Pidge was, he was sure this wasn’t her. He remembered how distraught she was, apologizing and begging for him to not hate her. Pidge was scared and a lost child, kept up in a universe of lies and questions with no answers.

When Matt saw Pidge get knocked back, even when Haxus shouted at him to stay back upon moving, he didn’t listen. He ran over and slid on his knees, grabbing Pidge from behind and holding her rightly. She struggled against him, but he wasn’t giving up.

“Stop it, Pidge! That’s enough!” he called out, holding the paladin as tightly as possible, even sitting and wrapping his legs around her lithe form. “You don’t need to fight. It’s okay. It’s okay, you’re safe. I’ve got you. Okay? I’m here and so is Haxus; you’re fine.” He hoped reminding her of these little things would help.

“Pidge, you need to open your eyes; this isn’t you.” Haxus knelt in front of her, trying to get her attention. He didn’t fully get it… but something else did.

Pidge had struggled, not focusing on anything except her escape from Matt’s hold. She stopped, though, when she finally looked at Haxus’ blade in his hand. Though this one was bigger, it was familiar. She had seen one like it before and it certainly wasn’t from the other Blades she already met.

_“I know they were traitors to the empire,” Drek said as he showed Pidge his prized possession, a knife with a symbol at its hilt, “but my mom gave this to me before I was taken from her and Dad. She wanted me to keep it close and hidden… only you and Kullo know about it.”_

“Just like… Drek’s...” Pidge whispered. Tears welled up in her eyes and she moved her hands up to hold her head again, dropping her bayard and causing it to deactivate. Tremors went through her body as she whimpered, seeming to have an internal battle, mumbling various things along the lines of _I’m supposed to be loyal_ and _I don’t want to go back_. She was caught in a sea of emotions and the currents were moving in different directions.

“Then don’t go back. Decide for yourself what you want to do.”

Matt may have whispered those words, but it sounded like a scream in Pidge’s heart. Like a mirror, she felt a side of her shatter as her eyes lost the purple glow and were back to the usual honey brown. Pidge blinked, the tears falling down her face finally. She then looked around.

“Pidge?” Haxus asked as Matt slowly let go. He nearly fell back when Pidge lunged for him, but it thankfully wasn’t in a violent manner. She hugged onto him, calling out _Papa_ as she did so. “It’s okay, Pidge, it’s okay… I’ve got you.” he whispered.

“Papa… I’m so sorry… I’m sorry...” Pidge whimpered, burring her face into his shoulder.

“It’s not your fault, Pidge.” Haxus reminded, gently rubbing the back of her head. He honestly wished he could remain there, hugging his daughter, but he heard Kolivan over the comm he had in place.

**“Haxus, what’s your status?”** Kolivan inquired. His tone sounded urgent. Was there trouble?

“Kolivan?” Haxus asked, listening closely. “We’ve got her. She’s fine. Stressed, but fine.” he reported. “What’s going on?”

**“We got ambushed by some sentries; they’re persistent and we** **weren’t** **able to bring down the particle barrier.”** Kolivan reported.

“Shit… and Sendak’s still at the bridge, I’m sure...” Haxus grumbled. “We’ll figure something out.”

**“I’ll try to keep the sentries on me and try to destroy them; I’m sending Krolia to meet up with you.”**

“Copy that.” Haxus confirmed. It didn’t take too long until Krolia met back up with them, pleased to see Pidge back on their side. However, they still had pressing matters. They had to take back the castle from Sendak and they didn’t have a plan.

“I think I know how to get Sendak out of the bridge and we should be able to lower the barrier from there.” Correction, no one had a plan except for Pidge. “But… I don’t know how much you’d like it...”

“Liking it is the least of our worries at the moment.” Krolia stated. “As long as you aren’t putting yourself in harm’s way...”

“Not me.” Pidge shook her head. “Papa.” She motioned to Haxus. “Sendak’s not happy with him… I think if Papa gets his attention, he could lure him away; Sendak would probably give chase to handle him personally.” Haxus and Krolia exchanged looks, the two considering this to actually be a good idea.

-+-+-+-

Pidge waited with Krolia and Matt, hidden from Sendak’s view until they saw the commander chase after Haxus. Once it was clear, they went in.

“You two get Shiro!” Krolia ordered as she ran to the main control console, hoping she could find out how to bring down the barrier.

Pidge went to check on Shiro with Matt, the elder of the two helping to support the black paladin and gently smack his face until he woke up while Pidge broke his restraints with her bayard. “Pidge...” Shiro croaked out, looking back at her. He offered a smile, though she couldn’t bring herself to meet his gaze.

Before anyone could get up and move further, Sendak had returned and literally threw Haxus right at Krolia. Ouch. Sendak gave a deep snarl. “You think that trick would work on me?” he inquired. He looked over at Pidge, seeing her close in on herself some. “Pidge.” He had that demanding tone. “Over here. Now.”

Pidge watched Sendak for a few short ticks before giving a sigh and rising to her feet. She could hear Matt whisper to her not to go over, but she still did. By the time she reached Sendak, Keith, Allura, and Antok made it to the bridge; either Krolia succeeded in bringing down the barrier or they found another way to get in. Pidge glanced back at Matt and smirked, confusing her brother for a moment. She then withdrew her bayard and jabbed it into Sendak’s lower regions, shocking him badly before managing to jump back and away from him.

Shocking the commander didn’t last long; it didn’t take him much time to recover. “So even you would betray me...” Sendak snarled, actually thrusting his mechanical hand at the small paladin, threatening to grab hold of her and crush her in his grip. But it was just a threat with the grip loose around her. He would deny being soft, but he knew he could never find it in himself to actually hurt her. But then he looked, seeing that fiery glare in her eyes, one that he recognized all too well, but not in Pidge, but rather in Colleen. “I see that look does run in the family.”

Pidge blinked. A look? One he had seen before? Pidge realized he could have been referring to either of her parents; the commander had to have met them at some point to compare them, right? “Tell me, Sendak,” she commented, “how was I found? Abandoned and alone… or surrounded and loved?”

Sendak was silent as a glare settled upon his biological eye. “Why does it matter?” he finally responded. “You’re a member of the empire...”

“A member? Or some tool?” Pidge closed her eyes. “I think I understand now… I was often praised by many for my quick wit and even genius ability… but I was dumb and blind all this time.” She opened her eyes again, leveling a determined gaze with the larger Galra. “You know, I’ve always told Drek and Kullo that it doesn’t matter who their kin are… who raises them… any of that crap. All that mattered was what they did. Well, I’m taking my own advice… and I’m doing what is right.”

“Keep in mind of your place, kit.” Sendak snarled, closing his grip around Pidge more.

“Or rather remember yours.” Keith hissed, charging at Sendak. The commander was quick to pull his mechanical hand away from Pidge to knock the red paladin away. As he did so, Antok found the opening to get in and sever that prosthesis, cutting through the energy arc that linked it to the main point at the shoulder.

Frustrated, Sendak gave a snarl, ready to charge at the tailed and still-masked Galra. Pidge took this as her chance to make her move, shooting her bayard low to create a tether. She looked to Allura who had gone to the computer and nodded, certain that the princess had a plan.

“Do it now!” Allura called at Antok. Antok struck Sendak, knocking him back and to the tether that Pidge made. This caused the commander to trip over it and stumble back further and to where the crystal was. Once there, Allura activated an internal barrier, one originally intended, when activated, to protect the crystal. This enabled them to trap Sendak.

“No!” Sendak snapped, smashing his hand into the energy field around him, proving he was trapped. He glared wildly at the others, clearly pissed off. Then his gaze landed on Pidge. Little Pidge. His little warrior. She had betrayed him, too. And yet he couldn’t find himself to glare at her anymore. “Pidge...” His voice was a soft growl as he put his hand up to the barrier, splaying his fingers out.

Pidge stared for a moment before going over to him. She barely registered Haxus gently calling her name, as though to tell her that she shouldn’t go near. But she didn’t obey and instead just put her hand where Sendak’s was, showing just how small her hand was compared to his, just how small she was in general compared to the commander.

“Looks like I’ve made my choice, Sendak.” Pidge smiled a bit. “Sorry I couldn’t be the perfect little warrior you wanted.” For the first time in a long time, she let Sendak see the tears fall down her face. “But this is my team; this is where I belong. And I refuse to be Zarkon’s tool.” She then turned away from him and went to where she left the mermaid plush on the floor, picking it up and walking out of the room, passing Kolivan as he finally showed up with four small mice on his shoulder.

Haxus looked to Kolivan, giving a silent question. The nod was all he needed before darting after Pidge, quickly catching up to her. There, he put his hand on her shoulder and got her to look up.

“How do you feel?” Haxus inquired.

“Like I want to sleep...” Pidge mumbled. “It feels weird… I feel like I’m thinking clearly for the first time in a while… and oddly enough… I don’t have a headache.” She sighed. She then looked up at Haxus and held her arms up in a childish manner. “Papa?”

Haxus smiled softly. She may have been fifteen, but she was still a kit and more importantly, she was his kit. Obliging, he picked Pidge up and let her wrap her limbs around him. “It’s been a long few quintants and you could use some rest.”

“I’m tired… but I don’t know if I can sleep...” Pidge mumbled. “I hurt others that I didn’t wanna hurt...”

“But you also discovered for yourself what you truly wanted.” Haxus reminded. “It will all work out in the end.”

-+-+-+-

Coran and Hunk had returned with the new crystal and it had been set up, fully restoring power to the castle. The Blade of Marmora helped get Sendak moved to be fully imprisoned and Shiro and Lance were taken to the infirmary to be treated.

“We’ve got Sendak fully detained now.” Kolivan reported. He looked to the healing pods, one with Lance in it and another with Shiro; he had been informed that Lance would be in there for about a day while Shiro would only take a couple of hours, though Allura worried that the wound on his face would scar. Shiro had assured that he would be fine and didn’t need the pod, but the Altean princess insisted.

“And Pidge?” Allura asked, looking up at the Galran before her. “She must be so scared.”

“She’s coming to terms with things. It will take time, but she’s doing as well as she can.” Kolivan commented. “But she has a good group around her. And now that she’s with Haxus and no longer has to worry about being taken to Haggar...” He sighed. “She’s still fragile, though.”

“Then as her team, we need to help her whenever possible.” Allura nodded. “We’ll help her however we can.” She looked down at the mice when they squeaked up at her. “Of course, you little ones can help, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like the previous chapter, this one was a re-written one. And as such, it turned out longer in the end. Wow! Anyway! I hope you all enjoyed it!


	19. "We're more than a team; we're a family."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge may have made up her mind, no longer feeling loyal to the empire, but she still isn't sure if she could trust herself to be with the team.

When Lance woke up to the familiar (and one not familiar) faces, he realized one had been missing from the group. Pidge. Not seeing her, he was worried. It was after that that he was told what happened between the time he was rendered unconscious and to when he was finally put in a pod.

“But Pidge is okay, right?” Lance asked. He had nearly died in an explosion and was practically comatose and the only thing on his mind was if Pidge was the one okay. Typical Lance, though, always looking after others and caring for them.

“Physically, she’s fine.” Haxus informed. “Mentally… she’s still recovering. But that will take time and support.”

“Well, that’s something we can do, no problem.” Hunk assured. “We’re a team. And she may have been a bit distant with us, but I think we can get through to her and help make sure she can recover.”

“Anyway, we should get ready to launch now that everyone is physically okay.” Allura stated. “Where’s Pidge? Is she with the green lion?”

“Last I checked, she was outside; she wanted some fresh air.” Haxus commented. And to avoid everyone with the shame she felt, not that he or anyone else wanted to say it; she may have come to her senses and helped out, but she still felt ashamed of herself. “I’ll go get her.”

“No, I will.” Shiro spoke up, standing from his seat. “I’m supposed to be the leader of Voltron; if I’m not able to be there for my fellow paladins...” He shook his head. “I’ll get her to come inside.” He then walked out, heading for the front entrance to start his search for Pidge. He didn’t have to go far, though, for she sat on the bridge that led up to the castle. As he got closer, he could see that the Altean mice were with her, the group doing their best to comfort her.

Since defeating Sendak, Pidge didn’t want to talk to many people, only Haxus, really. She even avoided her brother; Matt assumed it was Pidge being afraid of him hating her. He wasn’t wrong. Pidge was terrified of what the others felt and thought about her. They welcomed her and she turned her back on them. It may have been brief, but she still felt guilty for doing that.

“Hey.” he gently called as he approached Pidge. “Your dad said you were out here.” Dad. It almost seemed strange, but he easily understood why Pidge would see Haxus as a father figure. She had no family to grow up with except for those on the battleship she used to call home. From his understanding, Haxus was the closest to her, doing most of the raising of the little paladin. He was the most stable thing in her life, even when things started changing and affecting her.

He got closer and knelt beside Pidge, watching as the mice did their best to make Pidge feel better. Aside from Haxus, they seemed to be the only ones Pidge allowed to come near. “Lance is awake.” he informed her. “He wanted to see you.”

“Why would he?” Pidge mumbled.

“Because he’s worried about you.” Shiro pointed out, resting a hand on Pidge’s shoulder. He looked at her back that was partially visible. Despite the Blade bringing clothes for her to pick from, she still hadn’t touched the collection, having decided to stick with the shorts and top. “We all are.”

“I hurt you… I scarred up your face.” Pidge responded. “And I nearly killed Lance. All together, I betrayed the team.” Shiro could hear Pidge was ready to cry; examining her face, he could see the tears begin to fall down her face as she tried to rub them away. “None of it would have happened if I wasn’t here; it’s my fault this… this all happened...” She started crying more, looking more like what those on Earth would call _gross sobbing_. “What if it happens again? What if I hurt you all again? Or what if it’s worse next time?”

Shiro decided to be more than a leader; he decided to be a big brother. Growing up with the others, he felt like they were a family. And while Pidge may have been raised away from them, she quickly became a part of their family. “We’ll work together to keep a _next time_ from happening.” Shiro assured, holding Pidge close. He only shifted his hold a bit when a mouse squeaked at him for squishing him. “More than a teammate, Pidge, you’re our family.”

Shiro didn’t budge for a while after that. He knew that they wanted to launch and get started, but he also knew that Pidge needed a moment to cry. He could hear between her choked sobs at how much she didn’t want to hurt them anymore and all he could do was assure her that they would help her with this.

It had been several minutes and glancing, Shiro could see Haxus near the entryway, the Blade seeming to be checking on them. “Hey Pidge,” Shiro spoke softly since Pidge’s crying had quieted down and she was just sniffling, “how about we head on in, hmm? You ready for that?”

Pidge sighed. She knew she couldn’t cause any further delay, so she complied and carefully stood up with Shiro’s help. “Are… are you sure the others aren’t mad?” she inquired.

“I’m certain.” Shiro assured as he guided Pidge back to the castle, the mice hitching a ride. Haxus waited until they were near and walked in with them, heading to the dining room where the team was waiting while Lance had a bite to eat; being in the pod did often leave patients hungry or thirsty.

Upon seeing them, Lance went up to Pidge, watching her closely. The mice climbed down and returned the princess. Pidge looked up at Lance before diverting her attention back to the floor, afraid to meet his gaze. “Lance...” she mumbled. “I… um...” She didn’t know how to apologize. Would a simple _sorry_ even work after almost getting someone killed?

But then Lance hugged her. “No need to say anything.” he told her. The tears fell down Pidge’s face again as she stood in shock. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”

“Wait… what?” Pidge stammered. She managed to get away. “I nearly got you killed… and you… you were worried about me?!” She wiped her face. “I don’t get it… all this worrying about me… when I… I...”

“That part of you… I think I get it now.” Lance stepped forward. “When we were doing the whole mind meld thing… we didn’t see it clearly, but you were in trouble and practically faced hell… and anything could have happened between that creep and that pain you suffered...” Pidge nodded. Haggar. They had seen part of what Pidge endured with Haggar. “And your upbringing… I think this could be what we call _Stockholm syndrome_ , I could be wrong too, but...” He shrugged. “But that’s a part of you that was forced upon you.”

Lance offered a gentle smile as he pulled Pidge back into a hug. “It’s a part of you that you don’t need to worry about. If that you shows up, we’ll just hug it out of you. This is the you that’s our Pidge. Our teammate.” He looked down at Pidge. “Besides! You nearly killing me sounds like an exaggeration. I’m pretty sturdy, you know, and can handle a lot more than you think.”

Pidge actually managed a smile as she wiped her face again. “Thank you… thank you...” She still didn’t understand why the others were so open and just fine with her, even with everything that happened, but they accepted her. And to show it more, the other paladins and her brother came to give her a group hug. “Thank you… everyone...” she whispered as she snuggled into the comforting hold.

Kolivan watched the group. He had hoped for this moment for so long and seeing it, it filled him with joy and pride. Of course, he wasn’t the only one happy to see this, for the others watched with pleased looks on their faces; it was assumed Antok was smiling, but it was hard to tell since he continued to wear the mask over his face.

“It’s good to finally see them together.” Kolivan declared. “To see them like this.”

“To see Pidge smiling with others again… it brings me joy.” Haxus added.

“You’ve really taken on the role of a parent, huh?” Krolia inquired, jabbing her fellow Blade with her elbow. “Though it definitely is nice. Looking after the kids so long and seeing this full reunion with them.” Sure, Pidge had been with the others for a bit, but some would perhaps simply consider it physically. Now, though, she was there emotionally, happy to be with the others. Sure, she still questioned herself, but now it was about if she would hurt them again, not if she was loyal to Zarkon or her team and the universe.

“You know,” Hunk spoke up, “I was thinking… why does Zarkon want the lions so much?” He looked confused as he crossed his arms in contemplation. “I mean… we’re the paladins, right? So there’s no one else to pilot Voltron. I mean, it’d be useful if he still had Pidge in his grasp, but he doesn’t have us...”

Pidge scrunched up her face. “You don’t know?” she asked. “There can be more than one paladin available to a lion. After all, Zarkon still has his mark to signify him as the black lion.” The other paladins and Matt stared in shock. They had not expected that and no one informed them.

“Wait a sec… what the… Zarkon is...” Lance looked over to Allura. “Wait… did you know this?” Why wouldn’t she? She knew so much about the lions already and even the mark of the paladin.

Allura sighed. To be honest, she hoped Pidge didn’t know or even said a thing, but the cat was out of the bag. She looked to the Blades, their gazes being dim enough to tell her that even they knew and kept quiet about it. “I did know… but… I wanted you all to bond on your own… and not think about the past.” she stated. “Please, do not let knowing this deter you or dampen your spirits. You five are the paladins of Voltron; you’re hope, future, and fate of this universe.”

“This is both… inspiring and a lot of pressure...” Hunk sighed. “But...” He looked to Shiro, worried about what this meant for him. Would Zarkon be able to wrangle the lion from him? He didn’t know, but it would prove to be challenging.

“Well, as challenging as it could be with knowing that Zarkon is a black paladin, too,” Shiro spoke up, “I do feel better knowing. If anything comes up, I’ll hopefully be better prepared knowing.”

Allura smiled, glad to have that sort of response from the black paladin. She felt it was an appropriate response from a true leader. “Anyway,” she spoke up, “now that this is all handled, I do believe it’s time for us to launch.” She looked around to the others, seeing their silent confirmations. “Then let’s get going.”


	20. Closure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge may be a paladin and finally on the path she had chosen for herself, but she finds she still needs a bit of closure.

Pidge looked at herself in the mirror. It had been a few quintants since they nearly lost Voltron. In that time, they had made their way to the Balmera Hunk and Coran went to for a new crystal. During that time, Hunk had learned of how the Balmerans, the inhabitants of the planet-like creature, were living. Oppressed and their home being slowly killed off.

The paladins had worked hard to fight on the Balmera, a new monster showing up to take them down. But in the end they had succeeded. Now they had some time to rest and even train. For Pidge, though, she had a different plan in mind.

“Okay...” Pidge mumbled, tugging on the clothes she finally donned, “time to do this.” She watched herself a moment longer, taking in the attire she had picked out. Kolivan had brought clothes with him for Pidge to pick from and in the end, she finally decided not to wear her shorts and top anymore. Instead, she layered up with a sleeveless shirt, an over-sized hooded jacket, leggings with holes purposefully put in them, and a skirt. On top of it all, she wore a pair of large glasses with the lenses tinted green; she still preferred seeing things with a more green tone.

There was one last thing. The goggles she still wore on her head.

Sendak had been the one who gave them to her to filter out the purple lighting on ships and bases. She often found the lighting to be obnoxious and occasionally uncomfortable, but the tinted goggles helped.

With a sigh, Pidge removed the goggles. “I have to do this… I can’t meet it half way...” She looked down at them. Despite things, they were still special. She then went over to her bed; she hadn’t fully adjusted to sleeping in her room in the castle, but she at least made it more of her space, even taking some of her toys from the lion and putting them there. She put the goggles on one of her larger toys and nodded. “Okay… time to do this.” she declared before leaving her room and heading elsewhere within the castle.

-+-+-+-

“Have any of you seen Pidge?” Allura inquired as she walked into the common room, several articles of clothing draped over her arms. “I thought since you were all trying to get her to pick out some clothes she liked, I’d offer up some dresses we had. I thought they would look lovely on her.” Last she knew, Pidge hadn’t been picking anything and moved back and forth between her armor and the shorts; what she didn’t know was that the green paladin had finally picked something. No matter, though, she would probably like different options, too.

“She informed me earlier that she had some business to attend to in the detainment room.” Haxus responded, sitting with Kolivan and Matt, showing them various pictures he had taken of Pidge growing up.

“Wait… what?” Lance asked. “Isn’t that where Sendak is?”

“It’s not that I don’t trust Pidge,” Hunk spoke up, “but… is that a good idea?” He looked to Haxus expectantly, feeling he would know more since he had been the one to raise Pidge. True, it wasn’t the lack of trust. What Hunk did worry about was if Pidge could handle seeing Sendak; he worried how she would react around him, even if he was detained.

Was it a good idea? Pidge may have had her moments of conflict, lost in her way, but she lately seemed more and more determined to rise up and truly be a paladin with the team. He nodded, sure she would be fine. “I think it’s okay; she may actually need this.” Haxus finally responded. “But I can go down and check on her if it would ease your worries.”

“No, I can do that.” Allura interrupted before Hunk could speak. “I’d like to talk with her anyway about these dresses for when she’s not in armor.” Assuring the others she would be fine on her own, she went down to the dimly lit detainment room, a number of pods lining the walls. Only one pod was lit up and containing someone. Sendak.

In front of the pod was Pidge sitting down, the girl huddled up in the jacket she donned. The princess was ready to speak up, but Pidge started, or perhaps continued, to talk. To herself? No. Allura realized she was talking to the frozen and unresponsive Sendak.

“It still feels weird.” Pidge mumbled. “To… to stray from the empire. I mean, that was all I’ve known for my entire life. I mean, I knew other things, like getting into computers, getting past genetic locks on doors, and standing up for myself… but…” She let out a sigh. “As weird as it feels, I feel like I can finally breathe. Like I can finally think.”

Pidge looked up at Sendak’s still form; she had yet to realize Allura was there. Even though Sendak was frozen, she still almost felt intimidated by him, as though she expected him to manage to get out of there and drag her back to Zarkon. She didn’t even think she’d be brave or strong enough to kick, scream, and fight against him if he did that. But at the same time, she felt that she had more courage to say what was on her mind to him like this than if he could hear her. Than if he could glare at her or look at her with disappointment.

“You know, I had spent so long being loyal to the empire… I actually forgot I was still an individual. I had my own opinions. Like how I thought Drek and Kullo were such jerks at first and I beat Drek up that first day.” Pidge continued on; Allura nearly snorted, curious about that story, but she kept quiet so she could listen. Allura didn’t exactly see it as eavesdropping or being distrustful towards Pidge, but rather just hearing what she had to say. And so far? Nothing worrisome in the long run.

“And now I’ve made my decision. I’m a paladin of Voltron. And I don’t mean it because of this mark on my shoulder. Who care’s about that? I mean, thinking now, if I really wanted to, I could just hang it all and leave it behind, hide out somewhere, be my own person. But no… I’ve decided I’m going to dedicate my time, strengths, and training to helping others. And to finding Matt’s and my family.”

“To be honest, though,” Pidge looked a little downcast, “I had hoped you would be supportive of this… that you would decide to be with Haxus and me… you’re family too, Sendak… but… I guess you’re pretty loyal to Zarkon, aren’t you?” She watched Sendak. “I wish you could answer why. I mean, I knew why I was. Because that’s how I was raised. But now? Understanding more? Those people we rescued from your ship, my family and the other Earthlings from the station, the Balmerans… and there’s so much more out there… so many hurt.”

Pidge stood up, moving her hands as she spoke, showing to be more animated with the situation. “All these deca-phoebs, you’ve raised me to believe how great and wonderful the empire is. But it’s not!” She had nearly shouted as she started to cry a bit. “All that’s been going on, yeah, I understand there are some non-Galrans who live peacefully, but… but…” She sighed as she stepped forward, resting her forehead against the cool, transparent material of the pod. She felt more exhausted than a moment ago; actually speaking up was more tiring than silently throwing her shoe at him in frustration.

“I can’t believe I was once happy, even proud, to be part of the empire...” she mutter, though the listening Altean could still hear and understand her. “I feel horrible about it… but… I’m gonna change that.” She lifted her head, fixating Sendak with a look of determination. “I’m gonna help the others put a stop to Zarkon and his reign, help them right what was wrong.” She offered a smile. “And maybe… maybe you can learn to be proud of me with that. I mean, I’m still a warrior… I’m still a fighter… but this time, I’m fighting for something I truly believe in.”

Allura smiled. She was proud of Pidge’s conviction. Having listened, she understood why Haxus believed she needed this time to talk to Sendak, even if he couldn’t hear her or respond. He was a captive audience and Pidge felt she needed that. Allura found herself agreeing with this; Pidge needed to vent and get this off her chest.

“Hmm?” Pidge finally noticed the princess. “Oh! Allura! I… um… I...” She was flustered. “How long were you… uh...”

“A good while.” Allura declared. “You were on a roll, I didn’t wish to interrupt.” She walked over to Pidge and looked to Sendak. At one point, she harbored nothing but resentment for the Galran commander. Cruel and dangerous, even leading Pidge astray and getting her to blow up castle’s original crystal when a part of her didn’t want to. But now, having heard that Pidge still saw him as family despite deciding to be independent of him, she felt sorry for him. To be so tied to the empire to not even know what Pidge was capable of and to be proud of her decision, it was tragic. Allura felt put out that she couldn’t truly relate to how Pidge felt, she was proud of her family and upbringing, but she could at least be there for her.

“You know, he may not see it, but we all see just how strong you’ve become.” Allura reminded, supporting the bundle of clothing in one arm so she could gently wipe a tear from Pidge’s cheek. “We’re proud of you. Not because you’re a paladin… but because you’ve found the strength to make your own decision when before you felt so limited… restricted.”

Pidge gave a nod before lifting her glasses so she could wipe her eyes. “I guess… I guess I really was a prisoner all this time… a part of me didn’t want to believe it, but… but...” She found herself crying more. Afraid? Angry? Confused? Relieved. She was relieved that she finally felt free.

Allura smiled and gently set the clothes down. She then embraced Pidge, holding her closely. “It’s okay.” she assured. “Go ahead and cry; you deserve to let all of your emotions out.” And Pidge did. She buried her face against Allura, hiding it against her chest. Though muffled, her cries were still loud. This lasted for several moments until she settled down, though she didn’t yet pull away. Allura didn’t mind; she wanted Pidge to remain as long as she felt she should. There was never a _too late_ or a _too soon_ when it came to when someone felt better.

“I… I think I’m good...” Pidge finally pulled away. She winced when she saw the spot of tears and mucus she left on Allura’s flight suit. “I’m sorry...”

“No, it’s fine; it can be cleaned and I have more.” Allura assured. “I should go ahead and get changed then, hmm? Though so I don’t get it on the other clothes, do you mind carrying that stack for me?”

“Oh, sure.” Pidge nodded and picked up the clothes. “What are these for?”

“Well, you if you’d like.” Allura assured, motioning for Pidge to follow, the two walking out of the detainment room. “You haven’t been deciding on clothes, though I see now that you have, so I found some dresses that appeared to be your size and felt it’d be nice to offer them to you. But that is up to you to decide.”

“Oh.” Pidge stared for a bit before smiling. All her life, it had been uniforms, uniforms, and more uniforms; even the shorts and shirt she wore back on the ship were part of a uniform set. Clothes picked out for her, nothing especial. Yes, these had been picked out, but they were options, not necessary; the only necessary thing was her armor, but that was for understandable reasons. “Thanks, Allura.” she stated. “I take it back.”

“Hmm?” Allura was confused.

“When I called you a warden… I’m sorry about that.” Pidge responded. Hearing this, Allura smiled. She didn’t want to bring it up before, it hurt her feelings but didn’t want Pidge to say something out of spite and half-hearted, so she kept silent. Hearing Pidge come out on her own to apologize, though, it filled the princess with joy. “I can’t make it not happen, but… it’s not true, I can see that now. You’re a good person… really kind… a bit pushy… and probably stubborn… but you’re really great and just doing what you can to help us.” She looked up at the Altean. “I admit… I probably can’t see you as my princess… it’s nothing personal, I’m sure… but… I think I see you as something better.”

“And what’s that?” Allura inquired.

“Like a sister.”

Allura felt herself tear up as she smiled. “Once I get clean clothes on, I’m going to give you the biggest hug I can!” she declared. “And that’s a promise, not a threat!”

Pidge chuckled at that response, especially the final remark. “I’ll hold you to it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, some Pidge and Allura bonding.  
> I will admit, this chapter did make me tear up a little. But I also enjoyed it and felt it was necessary for Pide.


	21. "The kitchen started a food fight and it won."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The days go on in the castle and the team is hard at work... or at least passing time how they needed. Meanwhile, Pidge is working to clean up the castle's systems while Matt is figuring out how to get her to actually go and eat some actual food.

“Ugh...” Pidge grumbled, sitting in the green lion’s hanger. She he managed to set it up like another personal room. A station with computers to work on and a nearby spot sectioned off and filled with cushions, blankets, and a few of her toys, ready to be snuggled in; seeing this, the Blade of Marmora felt this meant she was calming down and settling in better. Sure, she still hadn’t slept in her own room yet, having slept at least once with Haxus, Matt, Coran, and even Allura, but she was settling in. However, her comfort did not help to deter her frustration.

“I warned Sendak that this could cause problems. And guess what? It’s causing problems...” Pidge worked to clear the systems and ship of whatever digital gunk the Galran tampered crystal put into their vessel and current home. “But does he listen? No. Not at all! Even before this mess! If it’s technological, he thinks just ‘cause he’s the commander, he knows what he’s doing. But he doesn’t! He doesn’t know a damn thing about machinery and electronics and it clearly shows!”

“Okay, Pidge, take your anger out on a pillow to help you settle down.” Matt teased as he walked in, a plate in his hands.

“I’m not angry.” the small Earthling nearly snapped.

“Mm-hmm.” Matt shook his head as he smirked. “Anyway, brought you a treat.” Pidge perked up. “Hunk got to do some baking with supplies the others brought. And he made peanut butter cookies.”

Pidge picked up a cookie from the plate and looked it over. She tried peanut butter not long ago, Matt having her take a bite. She hid somewhere for the better part of a quintant with one of the jars Kolivan brought and when she was finally located, she complained of a stomach ache while curled up next to an empty jar. It was not her smartest move but she learned two things: she should enjoy good things in moderation and she loved peanut butter.

Pidge wasn’t at all hesitant to try the cookie; she loved the peanut butter enough already and she came to quickly accept food if Matt offered it. They found that trying new foods, Pidge was usually cautious but quicker to try it if Matt or Haxus suggested it. One bite into the cookie and she was in heaven.

“Ooh! It’s so yummy!” she cheered. She was quick to take the plate from Matt, eagerly grabbing another cookie.

“Just try not to give yourself a stomach ache.” Matt hummed, teasing Pidge about her first encounter of peanut butter. She puffed out her cheeks in frustration, the action making the elder of the two laugh. “So! What are you working on?”

“Helping Coran get the castle cleared of that Galra energy.” Pidge responded. “It’s really messing with things. And honestly? I’m really doubting the castle is just malfunction on its own due to age; it definitely seems like this is caused by the energy the crystal left.” She let out an exasperated and maybe a bit over-dramatized sigh. “This is what I always hated about different forms of tech. As wonderful as they are, they aren’t all compatible. It takes so much work to fix things up.”

“Oh, so that’s why you were angry a moment ago, dealing with this.” Matt mused.

“I did warn him something could happen.” Pidge grumbled as she put the plate down and crossed her arms. “So, now… we’ve got this going for us. We’ve got a lot squared away, but there’s still a lot left to do… and there’s no telling how much corruption there is. And I think the lights and some of the tech malfunctioning is far from the end.”

“Well, you guys came this far with it, I’m sure it’ll get cleared out in no time.” Matt assured.

Pidge nodded. “So, what are the others up to? Allura’s still resting, I’m sure.”

“Yeah, healing the Balmera really took a lot out of her.” Matt nodded. “Krolia and Keith are on the training deck last I knew, I think Coran dragged Lance into helping him clean some places in the castle, Hunk should still be in the kitchen cooking, and I think Kolivan may be trying to figure out what to do about Sendak.”

“What do you mean?” Pidge inquired. “He’s not… he’s not planning on having Sendak executed, is he? I mean, I know he’s done a lot of bad, but...”

“No, no, nothing like that.” Matt assured. “If we have that done, we’d be no better than Zarkon.” Pidge let out a sigh of relief. Though managing to separate herself from the commander, Matt couldn’t help but think that Pidge still cared for him. He didn’t blame her, he had been a big part of her life. Plus, her kindness and concern toward even Sendak just showed that while the universe was cruel, a part of her could be kind and sweet. “But he is dangerous and he does have intel; Kolivan’s probably finding a base that would be appropriate to keep Sendak imprisoned at and perhaps questioned in hopes to get information. There’s only so much the Blades undercover can get and send.”

“Anyway,” Matt continued, “I’m going to find Coran, see what I could help him with.”

“I’ll just continue working here.” Pidge stated. She then cried out when Matt reclaimed the plate of cookies. “I was eating those!”

“Go to the kitchen and get actual food; I only brought them for you to try anyway.” Matt smirked. Pidge pouted. “If you promise to go and ask Hunk for some actual food, I’ll give you back the cookies.”

“That’s just a whole new level of mean...” Pidge grumbled. “Fine! I’ll get something else!” She moved quickly and claimed the cookies again, shoving one in her mouth as soon as she could.

“And the plate better not be empty by the time you get there; I’ll ask Hunk about it later.” Matt reminded. “Now, head on, you need food. You didn’t sit with us earlier to eat and I’m certain you haven’t brought anything here with you...”

“Always fussing about me eating… but fine, I’ll go get food.” Pidge sighed and gave in. She then headed out, going down the corridors to locate where the kitchen was. She hadn’t spent time there, so it took her a moment to locate it. Of course, there was an obvious sign that she found the right place. Actually startling her, several blobs of green food goo flung past and out of the kitchen area; it was a wonder Pidge didn’t spill the remaining cookies when she jumped in surprise.

“What’s going on in here?” Pidge called into the kitchen, leaning in to see Hunk hiding behind a counter. She ducked down in time to dodge another glob.

“The kitchen is haunted and out to get me!” Hunk whined, lifting his head above the counter. Unlike the green paladin, he didn’t dodge the goo and got smacked in the face.

Pidge decided to run in and kneel behind the counter where Hunk was. “I don’t think it’s haunted; it looks like the dispenser there is malfunctioning.”

“Any ideas how to fix it?” Hunk inquired, wiping his face off.

“Perfectly and without being too forceful or just winging it? No. Not at all.” Pidge admitted. She looked over the counter before quickly hiding again. “Okay, it’s just one thing and it’s got a hose. That’s good. If we manage to get to it, we can maybe… tie it? Yeah! If we tie it, it would stop the flow.”

“But… wouldn’t that build up pressure and explode and thus attacking further?” Hunk did have a very good point.

“It’s highly probable unless the material the hose is made of is very durable and able to handle the pressure and there could be a fail-safe and auto-shutoff if it detects a backup of material.” Pidge hoped that was the case. Hunk nodded, liking that hope and idea. “Okay, you take the left, I take the right.” Pidge managed to open a drawer of sorts, finding trays; she figured they would make perfect shields. “You see an opening, grab hold of that hose and pin it down; I’ll tie it off.”

“Got it.” Hunk confirmed. “But Pidge… if this mission fails and we don’t make it, just know it’s been a pleasure knowing you.”

“Dramatic much?” Pidge actually chuckled at Hunk’s comment, greatly amused by it. “But don’t worry; I’ve run many simulated missions, not once did I fail or lose a teammate; we’ll succeed and we’ll have tales to tell of our great battle of the kitchen.” Her response made Hunk grin. “Now, let’s go!”

Following Pidge’s plan, they went to either side of the dispenser, heading for the hose. Amazingly enough, when Hunk couldn’t block the goo, he managed to move in time to get it to go in his mouth; if that wasn’t skill, Pidge didn’t know what was. Once close enough, the yellow paladin jumped onto the hose, pinning it down. Sliding in, Pidge got it tied off and the two backed off.

“Did it work?” Hunk asked. He yelped and actually hid behind Pidge, ducking down behind the much smaller Earthling when the hose swelled up and goo oozed out of the dispenser. They stared for a moment, but nothing more happened. “Phew… it looks like it’s done.”

“Mission accomplished.” Pidge nodded. She then looked around. “Wow… this must be what the mess hall at Drek and Kullo’s base must’ve looked like…”

“Um… who?” Hunk asked.

“A couple of friends.” Pidge quickly responded but didn’t delve in further on the matter; though silent, Hunk was very curious. “Anyway, Matt said I should come for food. Looks like goo is out of the question.” She looked to Hunk. “Though why were you working with it? Weren’t other ingredients brought and you found stuff on Arus?”

“Yeah, but we have a plethora of edible food goo, so I was going to try and work with it more to create new recipes with what we’ve got already.” Hunk explained. “There’s no telling when we’ll be able to gather supplies again.” That did make perfect sense and hearing it, Pidge found Hunk to be very resourceful. “Anyway, we have some things that are quick and easy to warm up; I hope you don’t mind that they’re leftovers.”

“Leftovers?”

“Yeah, you know, when you make so much food you have some left over?”

“I’m… not used to that...” Pidge mumbled. “I’m used to rations and sometimes special treats… it’s… common in the empire. The rations, that is. Special things were… um...” She shook her head. “Never mind.”

Hunk watched Pidge before hugging her. “It’s okay.” he assured. “No need to talk about it if it hurts too much. But if you do want to, I’ll be able to listen to you and hug you.”

At first Pidge stiffened at the sudden embrace, but she soon relaxed and smiled. “Thanks.” she commented. She then looked down when her stomach rumbled. “Oh… I… I guess I am hungry...” She went around after slipping away from Hunk and picked up the plate of cookies, glad they were safe.

“Well, hold on for a couple of minutes, I’ll get you some food!” Hunk cheered. “Afterwards, maybe we should tell Coran about the kitchen… or maybe we should clean it?”

“Food first, cleaning second.” Pidge hummed. “Though later we definitely should tell Coran about this.”

“What caused the malfunction though? The age?” Hunk inquired. “It’s pretty old...”

“Hmm, something tells me it’s that Galra crystal energy we’ve been trying to clear out.” Pidge watched was Hunk put a plate of food in front of her. While she did normally wait until Matt or Haxus assured her, this time was different and she did promise she would get actual food; she took a small bite to check before digging in, finding it to be absolutely perfect, even if it had been extra food that was stored for another day. To Pidge, it was one of the best things.

“You should join us more for meals then; you’d like it when it’s fresh, too.” Hunk declared with a chuckle, joining the girl with his own plate.

“I’ll… um… I’ll consider it.” Pidge admitted. She wondered if she should. She only really ate with them once, and technically it was an utter failure filled with exhaustion, rage, and a food fight. Perhaps actually sitting down to eat with the others instead of holing herself up somewhere would be good, maybe even fun.


	22. Bonding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge finds herself bonding with Hunk, liking his company and how he gave her familiar feelings of her friends from training camp. But as the saying goes, "all good things must come to and end".

Shiro was down in the detainment room. He stood on one side of the long corridor, staring at Sendak in the pod. Pidge did her best to hide it, but he knew she still cared about the commander. But why? How could anyone care for this cruel monster?

“I don’t get it… did you brainwash Pidge that much?” Shiro inquired. “She doesn’t want others to know that she still comes down here when possible… to see you. But why? She’s trying so hard to separate herself from you… but you still...” He slammed his fist against Sendak’s pod. “You’re broken and imprisoned. Pidge left you behind!” he snapped. “So why… why...” Why was he afraid of having this defeated commander on board? Sendak was a threat, frozen or not. He had led Pidge down this cruel and vile road and it was because of the Galran that Pidge hurt her fellow Earthlings. He never blamed Pidge, he didn’t hate her, he wasn’t afraid of her, he cared for her so much. But Sendak wasn’t Pidge.

“If it weren’t for you, Pidge never would have done any of this.” Shiro was so sure of that. However, there was no telling how Pidge would have turned out if she had been raised by someone else, whether they be another commander or even by the Dayak.

_“Are you so confident that Pidge is who you think she is?”_ came a familiar voice. Sendak? Shiro looked at Sendak in his pod. Still detained and frozen. But he was certain that was Sendak’s voice. _“You don’t know Pidge the way I do. You don’t know what she’s capable and how well she can get past others when they underestimate her. She is a warrior and more than that, she’s a warrior of the Galra empire, serving Emperor Zarkon.”_

“You’re wrong! That’s not Pidge!” Shiro snapped.

_“Look at you, in so much denial.”_ Sendak’s voice taunted. _“Look at yourself further; you’ll see the proof that you don’t know her. You underestimated her once… you’re underestimating her again.”_

“Keep talking! It means nothing!” Shiro assured, anger still in his tone. “You’re just a bitter, washed up commander. She’s a paladin of Voltron and she’s our ally. She doesn’t follow you anymore.”

_“She will always follow me for unlike you, we have a bond.”_

-+-+-+-

“And clean.” Pidge nodded.

“You would think that a high-tech castle like this would have an automated cleaning system.” Hunk whined, sitting down after then spent the better part of an hour cleaning after they had food. “I bet Galra ships and bases do. Um… I mean...” He wanted to treat lightly, not bring up bad memories for Pidge, but the comment slipped out.

“Tch, are you kidding?” Hunk was a bit flabbergasted by Pidge’s amused scoff as she leaned against the mop still her her grasp. “If we were so spoiled with that sort of thing, we’d never learn some basics in discipline.”

“Discipline? That isn’t fighting?” Hunk asked. “No offense, but I expected discipline in the empire to be… you know, more violent.”

“We’re kits, Hunk; sure, while some things, depending on who did the upbringing or teaching, can be a little more painful for some, for most of us until we reach a certain age and officially start training, violence is kept at a minimum or not at all.” Pidge explained. “Keep in mind, even Sendak never laid a hand on me to discipline me… well… there was one time… put me over his knee and one swat later, but he didn’t approve of certain… words being used.” She rubbed her rear at a memory that, to Hunk, sounded very much like an Earth experience, too. “Okay, a little lesson about my upbringing in the Galran Empire. I had spent time at a base for training, not as a cadet, I was too young, but kinda like in introduction to what we’d see and to get to know others in our age group. Minor training for when we were old enough to enlist as cadets. Well, it was common that we were the ones who did the cleaning to keep the base presentable. Especially those of us who disobeyed and acted up.”

“So… what do they call disobeying and acting up?” Hunk asked, actually curious.

“Various things; my first one was jumping at another kit in my group and beating him and not stopping until Commander Brondak had to physically pry me off.” Pidge had the brightest grin on her face at that story, proud of it. She then motioned to the two little scars between her cheek and chin. “I got these two and the three on my arm here.” She had her jacket off and around her waist, so she pointed to the three scars near her elbow. “Of course, I left scars on Drek, too.”

“Drek...” That name again. Hunk thought of it. “Wait! Didn’t you call someone by that name your friend? So why’d he get scars?”

“Because I was the one who beat him up.” Pidge looked way too proud to admit that. “We weren’t friends yet, we just met when it happened. He picked on me since I wasn’t Galra… so I retaliated. We became friends later during that training camp, though.”

Hunk opened his mouth to ask or say something, quite possibly curious about Pidge’s friends in the empire, but he shut it and looked around when the lights flickered. “Please tell me that that’s just a malfunction… I really don’t want this place to be haunted.” he mumbled, his bottom lip quivering with fear.

“You believe in such superstitious tales of haunted ships and ghosts?” Pidge looked confused. “It’s just the electrical, probably due to the castle’s age or the crystal energy.” She let out a sigh. With the problems occurring more frequently as of late, she grew increasingly worried for Sendak. So what if she separated herself from him and the empire, she could still be worried.

“Pidge?” Hunk got close, seeing the concern on his fellow paladin’s face. “What’s wrong?”

Pidge smiled softly. Sweet and gentle Hunk. She couldn’t help but be reminded of Kullo. Sure, Drek was kind, too, but Kullo and Hunk were so much alike with how kind they were and the fact that they had so much love to give. She felt if they ever met, they would get along.

“It’s Sendak… I’m worried that these malfunctions may harm him.” Pidge admitted, hoping that Hunk would be understanding. “I get he did bad things, but...”

“It would still be wrong to just let someone get hurt, even if they are our enemy.” Hunk finished. “How about we go down together and check on things, hmm?” It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Pidge to go alone, but if something happened and Sendak escaped or Pidge needed some emotional support, he wanted to be there to help her.

They walked down to the detainment room, Pidge taking a mental note of every malfunction, mainly the lights flickering or doors jamming, as they did so. As they neared where Sendak was imprisoned, that was when they started hearing things. Sendak’s voice. But it didn’t sound like he was out of the pod, but rather everywhere.

“Okay, that’s spooky.” Hunk whined as he held onto Pidge.

“That’s… definitely new and a little unnerving...” Pidge admitted. She didn’t think Sendak was out, he would sound far angrier if he was, but it still didn’t put her at ease. She then froze when she heard another voice. Shiro’s.

“Bond or no bond! I refuse to let you or anyone else in the empire take her back and hurt her!” Shiro snapped. Pidge and Hunk rounded the corner.

_“You think you can stop this? She is a part of the Empire; she has been her entire life. She will always return.”_ came the voice again, sending shivers down Pidge’s spine. _“The Empire has made her strong; it has made her who she is. And you can’t change that!”_

“I won’t allow you to hurt her anymore!” Shiro was pissed off as he slammed his fist into the control panel attached to the cryo-pod. There was a sudden beep and then the internal pod was launched right out of the castle.

“No!” Pidge cried out, running over to the system. “No! He’s… he’s...”

“Pidge!” Shiro yelped, backing up. He blinked and looked to the now-empty pod. Sendak was no longer there and Pidge was staring at it in disbelief. “Pidge, I’m so sor-”

**“Paladins! Report to the bridge! We’ve got a problem!”** came Coran’s call over the castle’s intercom, interrupting Shiro.

Without looking back at Shiro, Pidge ran off, heading for the bridge. Hunk gave Shiro a worried glance before either of them followed after her. When they reached the bridge, they found an issue. Allura, who was supposed to be resting, had opened up a wormhole that led them to a far-off region where a star was about to go supernova.

There was a reason for this. In the castle, Alfor left his memories for an AI to help Allura after his passing. The energy in from the Galra crystal corrupted that and the corrupted Alfor had manipulated Allura, sending the castle elsewhere in promising he would take her to Altea, a planet that was destroyed so long ago. When Allura came to her senses, she couldn’t get back in control of the castle to get them out of there.

The paladins set out in their lions, hoping to slow the castle enough for Allura to get to where Alfor’s AI data was and remove it. As much as it broke the princess’ heart, she had to lose her father all over again. Ten thousand years ago, he had been defeated in battle; though Allura did not witness it, it still broke her heart when she found out. And now, the last piece of her father she could speak would have to be destroyed, too, in order for them to survive and escape in time.

For the good of the universe and those in the Castle of Lions, she destroyed the memories left in the ship. When they got to a safe point and found an area to land so that Coran and Haxus could hopefully finish clearing out the energy, Allura sought out Pidge. Shiro was worried that he hurt her, but he was worried that the green paladin would hate him for launching Sendak. The princess insisted that she could talk to Pidge about this, feeling that she could understand a little better. Sure, Matt could understand, too, his parents were still missing and could very well be dead, but the princess requested that he hung back instead.

Allura found Pidge down in the detainment room and staring at the empty pod that once held Sendak. Even if they could go back to where they were prior to the wormhole, there was no telling how far the pod drifted and they couldn’t track it.

“Pidge...”

“I’m sorry for your loss, Allura.” Pidge spoke softly. “To lose your father twice… it… it must hurt.”

Allura blinked. She could tell Pidge was hurting, too. Sendak may have been evil and may have harmed and even killed many during his time as a soldier in the empire, but he was still a family member to the green paladin. She moved closer and sat next to Pidge, putting her arm around the other’s small body and pulled her close. “You already know it hurts; you lost someone, too.” she reminded. She looked to the pod. “Sendak may have been cruel, but he was still important in your life. Hunk thinks Sendak was a lot like a parent to you; according to Haxus, while he raised you for the most part, even Sendak had a hand in it, too.” She rested her cheek on top of Pidge’s head. “I’m sorry for your loss, too.”

“I shouldn’t cry about this, but...” Pidge couldn’t help but cry and Allura shifted her position to hug her better, sitting with her legs out on either side of her, even if it did push up her nightgown, and embraced the smallest paladin fully.

“It’s okay to cry.” Allura assured. “Especially when it comes to people we still care for. Cry all you need to.” Sad as well, Allura allowed herself to cry as she hugged Pidge. She wished it wasn’t so tragic, but she knew that the two definitely had so much in common. At least she could try and help the smaller one cope with it. “When you’re ready,” Allura spoke, “I think we should go see Shiro. He’s really worried that you hate him.”

“Me? Hate Shiro?” Pidge wiped her face on her sleeve; she would definitely need to wash her jacket later. “Why would I? I’m worried he could be scared or cautious that I’d leave for the empire… I won’t, but...”

“So you’re not mad at him?” Allura asked.

Pidge shook her head. Shiro may have sent Sendak hurtling into space, but she wasn’t angry at him and she certainly didn’t hate him. “He sounded scared… he was probably afraid that Sendak would take me… it’s logical that he would react in such a manner.”

Allura nodded. “Well, let’s collect ourselves for a bit, get the crying out, and then you and Shiro can hug and make up, okay?” Pidge nodded in response and leaned against Allura. She continued to watch the pod as more tears fell, praying and hoping that somehow Sendak would still be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will be honest. At one point, the bonding between Pidge and Hunk in this and the previous chapter weren't going to happen; I was going to have her just be hold up in the hanger with her cookies and make a mistake, get herself a stomach ache, then hide in the green lion throughout the ordeal with Alfor's AI being corrupted, let her be oblivious. But that just wasn't emotional enough for me. So, we got these chapters to bring about the feels. And I truly hope you guys enjoyed them.  
> Well, until next time. Ciao!


	23. Always Too Easy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Even when you think you're doing everything right and one step ahead of your enemies, someone else could easily be further ahead than you imagined and ready to topple your plans.

“Commander Sendak,” Haggar spoke softly as she watched the commander flex his new arm, “do not think of this limited arm as a punishment. Failure was not your fault; the others had corrupted the green paladin and made her defect from the empire.” Sendak had been found by another Galran ship and brought on board. When it was reported to Zarkon, they wasted no time getting him back to Central Command. There, he was given a new arm, though this one was fully connected, not specialized or overly massive like his previous one. “This arm, though, will test you; you will need to prove yourself capable.”

“Of course.” the commander responded. “An arm is only as good as its owner. I will prove my own strength, even with this.”

“That is good to hear.” Haggar nodded. “Now then, I am losing connection to the green paladin… she has strayed too far from my power to keep her with the empire. I want you to bring her back. I will help her remember who she is and where she belongs.”

“I will not let you down.” Sendak responded before leaving, heading out to start his mission.

-+-+-+-

“Just what kind of training did you go through?” Lance whined after he was knocked back yet again.

“Is training in the empire that tough?” Keith inquired.

“I wouldn’t exactly call it _tough_ , it was just training.” Pidge responded as she stretched. “But man! It feels good to train against others again!”

“Okay… seriously… what sort of training do you go through?” Lance asked again, looking shocked. “I mean, we’ve been training for several years ourselves, on top of that we’re all bigger than you… but you wiped the floor with us!”

“Literally.” Hunk grumbled as he leaned back, getting his back to pop. “Oh, yup, that’s better.”

“Pidge’s sparring partners have always been bigger than her, so sparring with you lot is nothing new.” Haxus commented from next to Krolia, the two observing the paladins and Matt as they trained in combat. They were between tasks, going from planet to planet and helping others, and during their downtime, they were training when not resting. They may have been young, every member seen as children by the Galra (even if some were, in human terms, legal adults), but they had to train and be in peak condition for the war.

“Oh, they still do sparring at training camps?” Krolia inquired, Haxus giving an amused look as though to ask _do you really think they would ever stop that_. “Do they still have competitions with that?”

“Indeed. And while Pidge didn’t always win, she did show to be a fierce little warrior.” Haxus praised his daughter.

“Training camp?” Lance looked over after Keith helped him up. “What’s that? Some sort of propaganda thing the empire has?”

“Actually, when compared to parts of Earth culture, it’s a bit like a career study and summer camp.” Krolia explained. “Assuming not much has changed since I was Pidge’s age.” Which, with the longer lifespans of the Galra, was hard to determine how long ago that was. “Remember, before finding my way to the Blade of Marmora, even I was born and raised in the empire. And back then, training camp was meant to help young kits start training and get a glimpse of what they would expect if they became cadets and even figure out what they would train for. While most become soldiers and all are taught basic combat and flight skills, not all are soldiers in the end. Some work as engineers, or guards at prisons, or even take to staying at civilian locations, raising their families, teaching, or just maintaining things there in general.”

“So some lead rather mundane lives?” Hunk asked.

“Wow, didn’t expect that.” Lance admitted. He then looked over to see Allura walk in. “Hey, what’s up?”

“I know you must be tired after training, but we have another distress signal to respond to.” Allura spoke up. “Kolivan wants a debriefing before we head out.”

Agreeing, the group went up to the bridge, going over the plan for the mission they would face. They were given the basic idea of a plan, going in to attack generators and ground turrets to make it harder for the base occupying the planet to defend itself.

“With the black lion’s strength and power, Shiro, you would be best suited to striking the ship hangers; attacking them would get the structure to collapse in those parts and keep more fighter ships from being launched. Hunk, Lance, your lions would do best in attacking the turrets; the blue and yellow lions’ defenses will aid you. Pidge, Keith, with your lions relatively faster and more agile, you’ll be able to strike the generators, but also focus on the skies; fighter ships will have most likely been launched the moment they detect us.” Kolivan explained. With everyone confirming their tasks, Kolivan dismissed them, sending the group to their lions.

Pidge was quick to get to the green lion and situate herself. She tucked her glasses away and got ready to launch. When near enough to their destination and given the _go ahead_ , she, as well as the other four, launched, going into action and getting their parts of the plan taken care of.

Organized and working together with their parts, it didn’t take too terribly long to handle the threat of the Galran base on the outside. The inside, though, was another story. To truly take down the base, they had to work from the inside. As much as Allura didn’t want Pidge to get stuck, hurt, or captured while there, the green paladin insisted on helping to her fullest, even getting into the systems. Worried about the team and wanting to help, though, Allura joined them as well as Matt, Krolia and Haxus, aiding the team on the ground and with the infiltration.

“We’ll want to be quick and diligent; remember, do not take unnecessary risks.” Krolia reminded the group, mainly the boys she aided in training. She know those five like the back of her hand.

“A base like this would have a two point authentication to shut it down; this is to ensure rebel forces do not infiltrate and take it down from the inside.” Haxus explained as he checked the data. “If we can get a schematic of the base, we can figure out where those points are.” He looked to Pidge. “Care to show what you’re capable of?”

Pidge nodded and found a point where she could hack into the system, synchronizing her armor’s tech up with it and working to get around the data without being tracked. “It’s one of the reasons why Commander Brondak hated me so much at camp. Thankfully he was above doing things just to spite me… or the others when we acted up.” she admitted.

“Commander Brondak?” Hunk inquired.

“A moody but well disciplined commander.” Krolia responded, actually recognizing that name and knowing very well who he is. “I don’t think he’s even capable of smiling. If you see him, you may be able to point him out by his _completely done with everything_ expression.” She glanced at Haxus. “Just how much trouble did she cause him?”

“She got into a fight on her first day, not even fifteen doboshes into camp.” Haxus replied.

“Feisty kit.”

“And skilled kit.” Pidge smirked. “I got the data.” She transferred the data to the others before bringing up a holographic map. “They’re on opposite sides of the base and will need a Galra at each to give authentication. Problem is, I can’t get in from here to find the code… it’d be easier finding it here.” Pidge pointed to another station within the base. “The main security terminal would have the code to generate for the shut down.”

“Which means we’ll need to split into three teams.” Krolia nodded. “Pidge, you go with Allura and Keith to the security station; work on getting that code. Shiro, Lance, you two are with me; we’ll hit this terminal while Haxus goes with Matt and Hunk to get the other.”

Pidge followed the order to go with Keith and Allura. She honestly hoped she had Matt and Haxus with her instead, wanting to work with them since one was her brother and the other her adopted father, but she didn’t complain. Once there, the trio managed to subdue the corporal that was on duty there and destroy the sentries on guard.

“Okay, just give me a moment and I should have the access codes.” Pidge commented, getting to the main computer and working on it, getting into the system with ease despite not being Galran. She had long since developed that skill and only got her into more trouble at times. Well, at least it was a useful skill.

“We’re here and Pidge is getting to work. How are you guys doing?” Keith asked the rest of the team.

**“We’re nearing our position.”** Shiro responded. **“We’ll let you know when we’re in.”**

**“We just got into our section without raising the alarms.”** Haxus added. **“Though a couple of corporals are going to be feeling this in the morning.”**

“Heh, Matt and Hunk do know how to put up a fight.” Keith chuckled.

“Pidge? How’s it coming?” Allura asked, going over to check on the green paladin.

“Almost there… it’s a lot of data to cycle through and then to find which code is the one to use.” Pidge explained. “They go through a number of codes to keep the likelihood of a riot and being overrun to a minimum.” She checked over the information. “And we are good in three… two… now.” She was pleased to see her success. “Okay, I’ve got the code; I’m sending them to Krolia and Haxus so you guys can input them.”

**“Got’cha.”** Krolia confirmed.

**“Good work, Pidge.”** Haxus praised.

Before the codes could be put in, though, the lights dimmed and brightened, then repeated that over and over. That wasn’t too bad, but when the alarm went off, they knew they were in trouble.

“Okay, I don’t know what’s wrong. I don’t think I tripped anything...” Pidge tried to check until she was locked out of the system. “That’s not good.”

**“We’re locked out; we can’t input the codes.”** Krolia reported. **“We need to return to the lions and get out of here.”**

“C’mon.” Allura grabbed Pidge by the arm and took off, heading for the nearest exit. Keith followed suit, keeping close and on guard.

Pidge couldn’t understand why this failed. Didn’t they do everything right? Or perhaps they were expected inside after assaulting the outside defenses for the base?

“Shit!” Keith hissed when he found they had sentries blocking their path. Glancing back, he saw more show up behind him.

“Okay then, looks like we’re playing rough.” Allura nudged Pidge closer to Keith. She took a stance and smirked before letting her size change. What she didn’t tell Pidge or Keith was that Alteans had an ability to allow them to change their sizes as well as their colour to blend in with other races across the universe. She then took a bold move, actually charging at the sentries and knocking them away. “C’mon! Stay close!”

“How is this even possible?” Pidge asked, looking excited as she did as instructed.

“It’s an Altean ability.” Allura responded. “I’ll explain it better when we get out of here and back to the castle.” She led the way through, even past a closing door. Of course, the sentries were ruthless and still on them. They tried to get in to go after the trio further, but Allura grabbed hold of the doors, trying to shut them; closing fully wasn’t easy, but she did at least manage to hold them, keeping them from opening further and the sentries from overrunning them.

“Allura!” Pidge called out.

“Go! Get out of here!” Allura ordered.

“But...”

“Get back to the lions! I’ll buy you time!”

“I’m not leaving you behind!” Pidge snapped.

“We don’t have time to argue!” Allura responded. “Keith! Get yourself and Pidge out of here! Now!”

Keith didn’t want to listen either, he wanted to help, but his gut also told him that staying was a bad idea. “I’m sorry, Allura.” he said softly. He then grabbed Pidge up by her middle, holding the small girl under his arm as he ran off.

“No! Let me go, Keith! We can’t leave Allura behind!” Pidge cried out, doing her best to flail, but Keith had a strong grip. “Allura!” She looked to see the princess give her a sad smile as the sentries got through and quickly apprehended her. Then Keith turned the corner and Allura was out of sight. She tried as hard as she could to fight and get out of the red paladin’s grip, but Keith was just as stubborn as she was, not giving way.

Pidge didn’t stop her fussing, trying to get back to Allura. At least, she didn’t until she looked up at an observation deck that led to a hanger where cruisers would dock. Seeing anyone else, she probably wouldn’t have paid them any mind. But who she saw definitely caught her attention.

Sendak.


	24. Allura

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Allura captured, Team Voltron needs to come together upon a decision to rescue her. But even if they could, it was a very dangerous mission, wasn't it?

Allura was dragged to a battleship and its bridge. She looked to see Sendak there, surprised to see him. “Sendak...”

“Princess Allura, we meet again.” Sendak stated.

“If you’re hoping for Pidge, she isn’t going to waltz right up to you and join you again.” Allura spat out.

“In time, she will return to her senses and remember she is loyal to Emperor Zarkon and the empire.” Sendak responded. He then gripped Allura’s chin. “Hmm, though you aren’t her and we don’t have the lions, you will be perfect to lure her in and bring the lions straight to Zarkon.”

“Piss off.” Allura hissed. “They won’t deliver the lions and Pidge won’t return to you murderers!”

“You are so sure of this.” Sendak smirked. “And you are so very wrong.” He looked to his next lieutenant to replace Haxus. “Make a heading for Central Command.”

“Yes, sir.” the lieutenant responded.

-+-+-+-

“I don’t get it; it’s like they were expecting us! Like… fully anticipating we would show up!” Lance asked. “I mean, is it just me or did it feel like they purposefully had us separate so they could sound the alarm and attack?”

“It does feel like that.” Hunk confirmed with a nod.

“We’ve been making some progress already despite still being on the outskirts; no doubt they had been expecting us to show up there, too.” Kolivan pointed out. When the alarms were raised, things got chaotic. In order to avoid a fight they may not have been ready for, they fled once the lions were off the planet. Without Allura on the bridge, there was no one to open a wormhole for them to go through; however, the castle was fast enough and able to get out of there. But something seemed off. They hadn’t been pursued.

That was when Kolivan realized that Pidge, Keith, and Allura hadn’t entered the bridge yet. He grew concerned. “Coran, have the red and green lions returned?”

“Let’s see...” Coran checked. “Oh! Yes, they just arrived.”

“I thought the red lion was the fastest.” Lance deadpanned.

“They probably ran into more trouble and were held up.” Krolia rationalized as she smacked Lance upside the head. “And don’t start a fight with him about it.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Lance grumbled as he rubbed his head. He looked up when Keith and Pidge finally returned to the bridge, but something was missing. Someone was missing. “Huh? Where’s Allura?”

Keith glanced at Pidge, seeing the small girl holding herself, arms tightly crossed and her fingers daring to claw their way through the armor to dig into herself. She could only shake her head as she found a corner to huddle in, not even responding to Haxus or Matt when they went to check on her. Keith knew he had to explain what happened.

“We were being pursued… and Allura fought to hold the sentries back so Pidge and I could escape.” Keith spoke softly. “I’m sorry… we couldn’t go back for her.”

“Wait… wait a minute… you just left her? At the base?!” Lance exclaimed. “Why would you do that?”

“We didn’t have a choice.” Keith reminded. “We had been surrounded already and were trying to escape.”

“You should have tried harder!”

“We did what we could; she even told us to get out of there!”

Keith and Lance were in each others’ faces, both yelling and getting upset with one another. Of the group that had been raised together, those two were the ones who argued the most, often butting heads. It took Krolia getting between them and physically separating the two to get them to stop arguing.

“That’s enough! We don’t have time for you to argue and tell each other what should have been; it’s already done!” Krolia snapped. She looked over to Coran who was checking the computers. “Coran, are you able to track the princess’ location?”

“I did, but...” Coran looked worried. “She was taken onto a cruiser and they already left with her on it… they’ve already made a hyperjump...” He looked hurt, ready to cry; he managed to remain strong and held it in, but he was worried for Allura.

“Then they’re taking her to Zarkon...” Kolivan admitted with a sunken heart.

Shiro looked to his team. Hunk was fidgeting, worried about the princess. Keith and Lance were still glaring, Keith still sure he did all he could and Lance still blaming him. Then there was Pidge. She was still huddled in the corner, not responding to Haxus and Matt trying to comfort her; even Antok went over, picking her up and sitting down with her on his lap and trying to help her.

“Then we need to go get her.” Shiro declared. Hearing him, everyone except for Pidge looked over. “We can’t abandon Allura; she’s a part of this team… a part of this family. And we don’t turn our backs on our family.” He looked to Haxus. “Haxus, you’ve been to Zarkon’s command center before; do you know the coordinates?”

“I do… but flying in, we’ll show up on their scanners with ease and Zarkon would be ready and attack.” Haxus responded. He nudged Pidge a bit. “I’ll be right back, sweetie.” He kissed her on the forehead before getting up and going to Coran’s station. He motioned, silently asking for permission; Coran stepped aside, giving him room. Haxus put in a data chip and brought up a hologram of Zarkon’s command ship.

“Holy crow.” Hunk gasped out. “That’s Zarkon’s ship? I mean, a fleet… maybe a few, and we’re struggling… but that place? It’s probably got hundreds of fleets… thousands maybe!”

“It is definitely heavily fortified.” Haxus admitted. “And there are several battleships around the area, each ready to launch the fighter jets.” He shook his head. “There are no blind spots. Even if you could get the castle close enough to stay off the radar and send Voltron in, they’ll see it coming.”

“And let’s not forget that they would be expecting us; they will expect us to try and rescue Allura.” Kolivan added. He wanted to remind them that they were not yet prepared to fight Zarkon and his army at the central base and that they would more likely than not lose the lions, but he kept silent. The Blade of Marmora did their part in helping the group before they entered the war; now that they were in the battle zone, they would have to reach a point of making their own decisions and facing the consequences, whether they be good or bad.

“Kolivan’s right.” Keith sighed. “If we go and fight, we’ll lose the lions.”

“So what? We just leave Allura there?” Lance inquired.

“In doing so, we can protect the lions and continue our fight and training.” Keith responded. “Surely Zarkon wouldn’t kill her, right? He’d try and use her as bait… and we’d be foolish to go after.”

Lance didn’t want to admit that Keith had a point, but dammit, he did. “I mean, what about the wormholer? Can’t we use that thing?”

“Only Allura can use it, right?” Hunk asked.

“Oh… right...” Lance sighed.

“Well… it may be possible...” Coran thought it over before going through the data in the ship when Haxus stepped aside. “Yes… we have enough of Allura’s energy stored to get in. But… we won’t have enough to escape without her...”

Pidge looked up. She watched the display of Zarkon’s ship still up. They could get in but not out. They would need Allura for that. She let the gears in her mind turn, ideas formulating. She pushed against Antok and managed to get free of him, then she was on to circling the hologram, examining it closely.

“Pidge? What’s wrong?” Matt inquired, getting up to go toward her. He stopped when Haxus went over, keeping the older Earthling from checking on his sister. “Haxus?”

“Pidge is thinking.” Haxus spoke softly. “When at training camp, she was the smartest of her group, able to come up with plans with any simulated mission they would go through. She claimed the highest records of both group and solo simulated missions because of her skill in quick thinking, coming up with plans, taking into consideration of as many possible moves, and even planning several moves ahead. And that was just her first year; the years to follow, she improved those records.”

“Seems like you’ve done well in training her.” Antok complimented.

“That’s all her, actually.” Haxus chuckled a bit. “When it comes to her intelligence, that’s all on Pidge and what she aimed for herself. Destiny may have given her the green lion and the title of paladin, but she claimed _genius_ all on her own.”

“Amazing.” Antok sounded impressed.

“Hmm… if we… then from there… we can…” Pidge was looking around the hologram, as though she was expecting it to change. She then went around the room, grabbing different people there and moving them to different locations. The others were confused at first, not sure what she was doing and her mumbling was mostly incoherent or broken sentences, but Haxus assured them that Pidge knew what she was doing.

“Hmm…. Coran,” Pidge finally spoke fully, addressing someone, “can the castle handle being inside the dense gas of a planet?”

“Well, it depends on the planet, but many it would be able to.” Coran responded.

“Hmm...” Pidge went to Coran’s station and put in some data. “This sort of planet.”

“Actually… yes. The castle can handle that.” Coran assured. “Hmm… wait a tick! We’d be able to open a wormhole there and hide within the planet’s gasses; if we do that, we would be virtually invisible.”

“That doesn’t change the fact that Zarkon’s got a bunch of fleets ready to strike… I don’t think we’d be able to fight them.” Hunk pointed out.

“We don’t need to fight fully.” Pidge informed. “We just need to buy time, find out where Allura is, get her, then get the… what’s the word? Quiznak?” She looked to Coran. “Get the quiznak out of there?”

“Yes, that is a correct use of the word and…. A good idea actually.” Coran nodded. “When closer, I can scan for Allura’s energy signature.”

“I can aid a bit more with that.” Haxus stated. He highlighted a section of the ship. “This is where prisoners are held. It’s vast, but… she would most likely be somewhere in there.”

Shiro stepped up and stared at the hologram for a minute. He then nodded. “Remember, we’re a team.” he stated. “And we have to come to the decision as a team.” He looked around. “Hunk?”

“It… it sounds risky but… I’ve got your back.”

“Lance?”

“Let’s go rescue the princess.”

“Keith?”

“You can count on me.”

“Matt?”

“I may not be a paladin, but I’ll definitely aid you however I can.”

“Pidge?”

Pidge blinked. They had to save Allura, right? She was their friend. Their family. “I’ve turned my back on this team before.” she commented, still holding that against herself. “I refuse to do that again. Let’s go get Allura back.”

Shiro nodded. He then looked around the others, the Blade of Marmora and Coran alike. Seeing their mutual nods, going with what the paladins and Matt agreed upon. “Then let’s get to work.”


	25. "You can't tell me what to do!"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team goes in to rescue Allura, but there are a few snags in the process.

“Princess Allura.” Zarkon stated in a calm tone as the princess was shoved to her knees, her hands restrained behind her back. “It’s been a long time.”

“Too bad you didn’t quiznaking die in that time.” Allura bit out. “You murderer…”

“Death does happen.” Zarkon responded as he stood up. He approached the princess, his expression still the same as ever as he gazed upon her. “Alfor did all he could to protect the lions… but it was in vain. Soon they will come to me and I will have Voltron once more.”

“Like hell they will! The paladins-”

“They are young, no doubt. They care, too.” Zarkon interrupted. “They will come for you… and you will be the perfect bait.” He turned and returned to his throne, sitting back down. “I will have Voltron once more… and our paladin for the green lion as well.”

“Pidge...” Allura was worried.

“You will do your part just by being here.” Zarkon gently waved his hand. “Take her away and lock her in a cell. We must prepare for Voltron’s arrival.” A few soldiers did as told, not daring to underestimate the Altean as they restrained her further and dragged her off. “When Pidge arrives, will you be able to get her to respond?”

“She will be close enough for me to influence.” Haggar rasped out.

“Good.”

-+-+-+-

The team decided to form Voltron before heading through the wormhole. Once ready, Coran used the last of Allura’s stored energy in the castle to give them a path to the gas planet close to Zarkon’s base. While the paladins went out to fight their way to the ship, hoping to get to Allura quickly, Coran took to scanning it, planning to help them narrow in on her location by locating her energy signature.

As expected, Zarkon had been planning their arrival. When Voltron was in range, a barrier was erected, forming around the area.

 **“Huh? What’s that thing?”** Hunk inquired.

 **“It looks like a barrier; you guys focus on the princess while we work on figuring out the barrier.”** Kolivan told them.

 **“Got it; let’s go in fast and locate Allura.”** Shiro told the team, leading them in toward Zarkon’s main ship, maneuvering their way around battleships and taking down fighter jets. At his command, they formed their sword, slicing at one of the battleships that was trying to use its ion cannon to attack them. When more fighter jets showed up, he called upon Hunk to form the shoulder cannon, letting them take down several of the jets in one fell attack. **“Good work, team! Now, let’s get to Zarkon’s ship.”**

The team flew in closer, dodging attacks and striking back when possible. They hoped they could narrow in on where Allura was, but there was a problem.

Voltron started to seize.

 **“What’s going on?”** Lance asked.

 **“We lost Voltron’s sword.”** Keith reported. **“Voltron’s malfunctioning.”**

 **“Just try to hold on team.”** Shiro grunted as he did his best. He could feel a pull, as though someone was fighting him for control. **“Shit… I think… I think Zarkon’s trying to… gain control...”**

 **“You gotta be strong, Shiro; don’t let Zarkon win.”** Keith reminded, hoping he could encourage his friend and leader to hold on.

 **“I’m trying… but… I can’t do it alone...”** Shiro admitted.

 **“We’re doing what we can.”** Hunk spoke up. **“Pidge? Pidge, how are things for you?”** No response. **“Pidge?”**

 **“Hey, Pidge, do you copy?”** Lance asked.

Pidge couldn’t respond. She felt like her head was going to split. She did so well at first, but after Voltron started to seize, she felt her head throb with the worst headache she ever had and a voice louder than any ship’s engine room trying to talk over every other thought in her head. “No… no no no! Get out… get out...” she whimpered, curling forward in pain.

It didn’t take long, a couple minutes at most, but Voltron was separated, leaving them weaker individually. Three lions remained operational, Shiro was having a mental battle, trying to keep the black lion under his control, and Pidge was having a painful episode. This was not going well and definitely not going according to their hopes and plans.

Back in the castle, the others were trying to figure the situation out, especially with Pidge. Haxus had a theory, though. “We must be too close to Haggar.” Haxus stated. “Pidge is still struggling and Haggar’s most likely trying to control her.” He bit his lip. “I need to get to Pidge and help her; Coran, do you have something to help me get to the green lion?”

“I do, but...” Coran didn’t know how good of a plan this was.

“Haxus, we need you here to try and work on getting that barrier down; if it can be done remotely, you’re the best one.” Kolivan reminded.

“But Pidge...”

“Don’t worry.” Krolia spoke up. “I’ll get to her.” She may not have raised Pidge, but she was a mother and she had raised her own son and helped with the others; she was sure she could take care of Pidge and help her through this.

“Coran, show Krolia what she needs to get to Pidge; I’ll keep scanning for Allura’s exact location and help with the defenses as best as I can.” Kolivan ordered.

“Right; I’ll be back in a tick.” Coran ran off, leading Krolia elsewhere. Determined to help, Matt followed them. “Once you’re both ready and suited up,” he explained from near the launch bay, “you can use these gliders; they have enough strength and energy to get you to the green lion.”

“Thanks, Coran.” Krolia nodded. Once sure they were set, Coran left them to finish up. Suits on, helmets in place, and the two positioned on two different gliders. “Ready, Matt?”

“Ready.” Matt nodded.

Krolia did a short countdown before closing them in the launch bay and then setting them out, sending them toward the green lion. It didn’t take long and thankfully they weren’t hit by any shots of the ongoing battle around them. Even better, the lion permitted the two to go inside through the mouth.

“Pidge? Pidge!” Once in the cockpit, Matt wasted no time in getting to his sister, worried about her safety. He felt saddened, pained even, seeing her like that. She looked to be in so much pain as she tried to fight whatever mental battle she was facing. “It’s okay, Pidge, I’m here for you. I’m right here.”

Pidge could only shake her head as she whimpered. At this point, she could hardly form words other than _get out_. Krolia and Matt were both certain that Pidge wasn’t talking about them, but rather whatever Haggar had done to her.

“Pidge, I need you to focus on me.” Krolia got in close. She then dared to pick Pidge up out of her seat. She brought her over to the side, sitting down and cradling her. “C’mon Pidge, you need to breathe. Breathe with me, sweetie.” she coaxed as she rocked back and forth, hoping to get through to the small child she held. “It’s okay, we won’t let them hurt you. You’re safe. We’re with you.”

“I don’t wanna go back...” Pidge finally managed to say. “I don’t wanna go… I don’t… make them stop… stop… get her out...”

“You need to be strong, Pidge; you need to fight them. Fight for control. Fight for what you feel you need.” Krolia reminded. She rested her cheek against the top of Pidge’s head.

“Pidge… you said you won’t turn your back on the others.” Matt didn’t know if his plan would work, but it was better than doing nothing, silently praying that she would pull herself out of whatever mental turmoil she was facing. “They need you out there. They’re fighting hard to rescue Allura, but they can’t do it alone. You need to be strong… if not for yourself, then for your team… for your family.”

“Fam… i… ly...” Pidge mumbled. She shook her head, though this time it was rough as though she was trying to shake something out. “I can’t… I can’t give up… I can’t… but it hurts… that voice keeps...”

“Don’t focus on that voice…focus on anything but it. Your surroundings. Us. Good memories. Whatever helps, focus on that. Tune out the voice…” Matt knew it was easier said than done, but he didn’t know what else to tell her. He was hoping she would manage to pull through.

**“Pidge? Pidge, where are you?”**

**“C’mon Pidge, we can’t do this without you.”**

Voices. She tried to tune out the voice in her head as she listened to the others call for her, hoping she would be able to respond and help.

_Just give in. Don’t fight. The Empire is where you belong; we’re so close now!_

_You swore you wouldn’t turn your back on the others… are going to just surrender like that? Are you going to let the empire use you? Hurt those you hold dear?_

Pidge took a deep, shaky breath. She managed to get up and return to her seat. “This… this is my lion… and my life… I won’t let… I won’t let the empire… dictate what I do...” She struggled to say those words, her breath getting caught in her throat several times, but she managed it. She did her best to gain control of her lion. “I won’t give up without a fight...” Pidge managed to move the green lion in time. She was quick to move as she went at a fighter jet and destroyed it before it could catch the blue lion off guard.

 **“Phew! Nice save, Pidge!”** Lance praised.

“Happy to help.” Pidge nodded. She could still hear the voice trying to get her to side with the empire again, but she did her best to help. “What’d I miss?” She moved to dodge some weapon fire from some fighter ships before she and Lance went at them, covering the yellow lion as it was embedded into the side of Zarkon’s ship and not moving.

 **“To sum it up? Shiro got rejected by the black lion, Keith’s being an idiot and trying to fight Zarkon to keep the lion away from him, somehow Shiro ended up inside the ship, Hunk found Allura, and now those two are looking for Shiro.”** Lance explained. **“How are you holding up?”**

“I’ve got a splitting headache and further loathing for Haggar and the druids...” Pidge responded. “But… I’m managing.” _And I’m not alone. I’ve got the team… and I’ve got my brother._ She went at more ships, aiming to take them down. After several moments, the yellow and black lions finally moved. Hunk and Shiro were back in their respective lions and in control again. “Did you get Allura?”

 **“I’m back; hold on a few ticks and I’ll get the wormhole open!”** Allura informed them. She had been dropped off at the castle where she ran back to the bridge. Allura took her position and tried to open the wormhole, but it didn’t form. “What?” She looked astonished. “It didn’t work?!”

“I’m trying to bring down that barrier; it’s somehow preventing us from escaping.” Haxus responded.

“Well you need to hurry.” Coran looked at the display. “Quiznak… we’re surrounded.”

“C’mon, Thace…” Haxus muttered under his breath, talking about another Blade that was stationed on Zarkon’s ship. “Yes! It’s going down!” And indeed the barrier was.

Allura wasted no time in getting a wormhole open. She then went through after the lions were on board. However, an attack came from Zarkon’s ship, attacking the wormhole before it could close and causing a problem.

 **“Coran? What’s going on?”** Shiro asked.

“The integrity of the wormhole is failing; it’s breaking down.” Coran reported.

 **“What’s that mean?”** Lance questioned.

“It means we have no control over where we’re going.” Coran informed. The castle shook as it barreled through the corrupted wormhole. With this, the lions were knocked out and into the wormhole. They didn’t tumble after the castle, though; they completely exited through the sides. “Oh no! Allura! We lost the lions!”

“Oh no...” Allura stared in horror. She didn’t know where they went; with how the wormhole ended up, they could be anywhere in the universe, scattered and most likely separated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wait a tick... checking over this chapter again, did I seriously not have to make edits and corrections along the way? Wow. Normally I have to.  
> Anyway! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!


	26. The Klaumia Base

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge wakes up to find herself at a Galran base. She has no intention on staying there, but first she needs to find Matt and Krolia.

Pidge stirred. She felt so heavy, perhaps it was the exhaustion she felt? So much had gone on, being exhausted was entirely reasonable. If possible, she would rather sleep it off, not wanting to wake up. She moved to snuggle into something soft, expecting to find her Yupper next to her, but she found that there were no plush items. No cushions. No toys. No extra pillows. No comforter that she could easily hide under. She she realized she only had one pillow and a thin blanket.

“Hmm?” Pidge sat up and cracked her eyes open. “Where’s my st...” She froze. The lighting was purple, not the familiar green of her lion or the oddly comforting blue and white she came to appreciate in the castle. She looked around wildly, trying to figure out what happened. When she checked herself, she found she was just wearing the bodysuit from under her armor; she was relieved to see the rest of her armor to the side, sitting on a bench that was attached to the wall.

“What happened?” she asked. She tried to think about it. She remembered going to rescue Allura with the others. She needed help though; she was in pain and Matt and Krolia had to help her. “Wait… Matt, Krolia… where...” Like the scared kit she was, when the door to the room hissed as it opened, Pidge scrambled into the corner of the bed, back pressed to the wall. She watched as someone wearing the armor of a higher ranking lieutenant, commonly found on physical bases rather than battleships; this told her she was on a base with far more personnel rather than just a few biological soldiers and plenty of Sentries.

“Hmm? Now why are you hiding over there; don’t fret, Pidge, you’re safe.” the older Galra stated. The fact that she knew Pidge’s name meant that she was aware that she was a paladin. While not all would know her by name, the moment they saw her with the green lion or her mark, they would know her role and contacting the right people or even simply Central Command, they would know her name.

“Where am I?” Pidge inquired, doing her best to settle down. She figured she must have passed out after going through the wormhole; it honestly didn’t surprise her since she had been struggling to fight against Haggar’s attempt at controlling her as well as getting flung out of a corrupted wormhole.

“You’re at the Klaumia base within the Avanpus Sector.” the Galra responded. “I’m Lieutenant-Commander Zevla.”

Lieutenant-Commander? That definitely helped Pidge realize where she was. Bases that utilized the need for a _lieutenant-commander_ meant that it was definitely much larger, catering to a greater personnel. More than that, there were probably others around her age that were training there.

_I wonder if anyone I know is training here…_ Pidge thought to herself.

“Anyway, the commander already contacted Central Command; in a few vargas, an escort should arrive for you.” Zevla assured in a gentle tone.

Pidge did her best to not shudder at that thought. An escort? Probably Sendak or worse, a druid or even Haggar. She nodded, hoping to not give away the fact that she was no longer part of the empire. “Um… when I arrived...”

“You unfortunately crashed… you were exhausted and seemed to be in pain, so we had you brought in here; a doctor already checked you over, but you were otherwise okay.” Zevla informed. “We have the green lion secure in one of the main hangers.”

“There were others with me, though… right?” Pidge asked. She hoped that was the case. She truly hoped that nothing happened to Krolia and Matt when they were flung out of the wormhole.

“They’ve been detained; we don’t know how they infiltrated the lion, but no matter.” Zevla informed. She looked back at the door. “Anyway, I have work to do. You go ahead and continue to rest; surely you need it.” She offered Pidge one last gentle smile before dismissing herself.

Pidge couldn’t find herself to hate, not even dislike, many members of the empire. Though loyal to Zarkon, so many were still decent Galra; Zevla seemed like a kind woman, understanding of others. Or perhaps she was like some Pidge met as a younger child, a bit of a kiss ass in hopes of something better. No, that didn’t seem right; she had the same air about her that she got around Commander Bogh.

Despite knowing and even accepting how nice some Galra were, Pidge knew she couldn’t remain. It wouldn’t be too long before someone came to take her back to Central Command. Odds were news of her defecting from the empire hadn’t begun to circulate or it was kept hidden so no one worried. However, even if no one knew and it was kept a secret, she knew it would be ill advised to don her paladin armor and try to sneak around. Even if she donned a uniform of the empire, some who knew she was there would probably try to get her to rest instead.

“Okay, what do I have to work with?” Pidge asked as she vacated the bed finally and went to her armor. She put it on as she looked around. “Shouldn’t go out the door, there could be sentries… think Pidge, think… Oh!” She looked up and saw a vent. The thing about vents, even on Galran ships and bases, was that they weren’t fully meant for Galrans to go through. If they needed cleaning or repaired, drones and sentries were available. Pidge, though, was much smaller than the average Galran, even smaller than most her own age; there were a few exceptions, but within the next couple of deca-phoebs, they would be taller than her. Being small had its perks.

Pidge checked to make sure her bayard was with her armor. Perfect. She then got up toward the vent, removing its cover as quietly as she could. “Okay, now to get out and find out where Krolia and Matt are.” She pulled herself into the vent and put its cover back in place; doing that, she hoped if she was found out too soon, she would at least keep the others from finding out her path sooner.

As Pidge slipped through the vents, she kept her eye out for any control or power panels. While the Galrans typically didn’t enter vents, sometimes drones needed to access them to shut down certain sectors or power them back on to make sure the base can be maintained and repaired as needed. When there, she managed to get into it, accessing the data to find out where exactly the prisoner ward was. Finding the green lion would be easy, she could already feel for her old friend calling for her, but the prisoners were another story.

“There are more than just Matt and Kro...” Pidge blinked. She checked to see that the prisoners were awaiting transfer to work camps, though Krolia was listed to be sent to Central Command, too. _Most likely so Zarkon can have her executed if they found her out to be against the empire…_ she thought. She then nodded. _Okay, Krolia and Matt are my priority, but I can’t let the others suffer, too; I’ll do what I can._ Determined and putting the data from the access point onto her armor’s tech, Pidge closed up, hid all traces that she was there, then silently slipped through the vents once more. She had her goal in mind and she knew how to get there now.

Pidge reached the section that would get her as close to the cells as possible, though she would need to drop down and traverse a few corridors, too. It was faster and easier that way; with how the vents were, she would take too long getting around to get right to the prisoner ward. Pidge didn’t know if this was ill planning in terms of air circulation or genius planning to prevent prison breaks through those. _Maybe a bit of both?_ She added as a thought.

Pidge found a vent cover and removed it before looking out. The coast was clear; no soldiers either working or milling about and no sentries on patrol. She slipped out and utilizing her bayard’s hookshot form, she was able to lower herself from the ceiling; she couldn’t put the cover back in place, but that would be fine for the time being.

She then ran off, quick on her feet as she headed for the cell block. She didn’t stop until she saw two armored figures step out from another hall, one jumping back in surprise and the other quickly readying themselves for combat, a small device activating into an energy sword in their hand. She saw the armor and in that instance, she knew they were both cadets, probably not much older than she was, maybe even the same age. They were taller than her, but not by much.

“Stand down; I don’t want to fight you.” Pidge called out, making sure her bayard was in hand and she was ready for the fight. She wondered if she had perhaps trained with either of them before. It was highly possible, she met a lot of kits in her age group during the training camps. She couldn’t recognize them with their helmets on, though; of course, they wouldn’t recognize her either since she had hers in place.

“Then lower your weapon and stand down.” the one ready for combat responded.

“Not gonna happen.” Pidge charged at the other. She hoped she could at least subdue them, get them pinned or even knocked out. She engaged the other in combat, noticing that they were almost as quick on their feet, able to dance around her with ease. Peculiar. Most who fought against her, even in training before they were old enough to be cadets, didn’t move in such ways; they would try to take her head on, underestimating her. But this one acted like he had fought against someone of her stature before. It made her wonder even more if she had trained alongside them.

But she couldn’t worry at the moment. She had to get past them so she could get to her brother, Krolia, and the other prisoners. She didn’t have the luxury of time on her side and had to be quick. That was when she noticed the other one just standing to the side, hands fidgeting against each other as they seemed to stare. Most would have either aided their partner or, more preferably, gone to sound the alarm. But this guy just stood aside.

“Eyes on you opponent, or are you that much of a rookie?” the one she fought bit out.

“I was thinking the same thing about you.” Pidge smirked. She smashed her bayard against the energy blade they were using, locking the two against each other. “I won’t say it again; stand down.”

“Victory or death.”

Pidge nearly faltered. That line. She was raised on that principle for so long. It was practically instilled in her, always taught that she must be strong and victorious or at least die trying for any sort of honor. Once before, she didn’t think much of it other than that she would _always_ be strong and victorious. Now, though, she saw just how horrible it was.

“That’s no way to live!” she snapped at the cadet she fought, getting her weapon past theirs and at their helmet, hitting it right and knocking it up and completely off their head. She was ready to strike again when their blade came dangerously close, but she stopped when she saw a very familiar face and two little scars on the other’s cheek. Two scars she caused a few years ago.

“Wait… Drek?” she asked, her eyes widening.

“Pidge?” he responded, as much shock on his face as hers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh ho! What's this? Pidge ran into Drek!?  
> Well! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter of Raising Paladins!


	27. "When one door closes, another gets blasted open."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge is reunited with old friends, but she's not in the clear yet. She's on a tight schedule and has to get away before she ends up a prisoner of the empire. But will her friends allow it or will the whistle be blown?

“Wait… Drek?”

“Pidge?”

The two just stared as they slowly lowered their weapons, even going as for as to deactivate them. Then Pidge jumped at the other male, wrapping her arms around his neck. He responded just as happily, his arms wrapped around her in a tight yet comforting embrace.

“Hey, pipsqueak!” he teased, picking on her for her size; after a certain point, Pidge didn’t mind so long as it was her close friends. “It’s been a while.”

“I can’t believe we ran into each other!” she cried out with joy. She knew it was possible to meet those she trained with before, but for one of them to actually be her best friend? She then looked over to the other cadet. If this was Drek, then the other had to be… “Kullo?”

Kullo removed his helmet and smiled. Looking back, Drek set Pidge down so she could run over to him and hug him as well. “Hey Pidge, I missed you.”

“I missed you, too.” Pidge responded, wrapping her limbs around him. When she was set back down, she looked back and forth between them. “Oh wow… you two being here...”

“Wow, the commander said we had an important guest on this base but… I had no idea that was you; they didn’t tell us much.” Drek looked ecstatic. “Wow! How long are you here for, Pidge?”

Pidge’s smile fell. Seeing that, Drek and Kullo were concerned. “I’m not staying.”

“Well, we can still hang out, right? I mean, you’ve got a bit of time, right?” Kullo inquired. Pidge shook her head. “Pidge?”

“I… I feel I have to ask something of you two.” Pidge stated. “I’m not asking you guys to do anything too risky… but I need you guys to pretend you didn’t see me.”

“Wait… what?” Drek and Kullo were both confused by Pidge’s request. Pretend they didn’t see her? It didn’t make sense. “What are you getting at?” Drek inquired.

“I can’t stay… and I can’t return to the empire.” Pidge admitted. “I’m a paladin of Voltron… but not an ally of Zarkon’s.” Hearing Pidge say his name without any proper titles, the two were shocked. “I’m sorry guys… but...” Pidge shook her head. “Just pretend you didn’t see me.” She then turned and ran down the hall, as much as it pained her to not explain herself fully or even saying _goodbye_. Before she got far, though, Drek was quicker than she was and grabbed her by the arm. “Drek...”

“You’re just saying this without an explanation?” Drek asked, pulling Pidge back over. “What the hell? Are you betraying the empire?” Pidge averted her gaze, wanting to look at anything other than Drek’s eyes. The blue coloured Galran didn’t appreciate this. “Pidge, you’re a proud member of the Galran Empire. Destiny may have given you the green lion, but everything else you earned, which is more than I can say for some other Galrans. You can’t turn your back on this.”

“I’m sorry, Drek, but...” She sighed. “I’ve seen glimpses of what the Empire is about… I’ve seen the horrors...”

“That’s what happens. I mean, this is a war, bad things happen...”

“Innocent lives are ruined including my own family!” Drek was startled by Pidge raising her voice and showing her temper. It wasn’t that he lived in fear of the girl, but he knew her temper was not something to underestimate. “Did… did you know I have a brother? I found out recently… he looks so much like me.” Pidge stated, finally looking up at Drek. “And he’s a prisoner here… I need to rescue him… I need to rescue all the prisoners… and I need to leave...” She put her hand over Drek’s, carefully removing it from her arm. “Drek, Kullo… I’m sorry. But this is something I have to do. That’s why all I can ask is you just pretend you didn’t see me… if you have to say you did, then… maybe just tell them I subdued you or got away?”

“Pidge… please...” Drek looked to be in disbelief. He didn’t want to believe that this petite warrior was leaving the empire, betraying all that they knew and were raised with. “You were the one that always told us that family didn’t define us, right? And now you’re telling us that this _brother_ is defining you?”

“Not defining me… but… I do care for him. And my team. They don’t define who I am, I do that, but…” Pidge sighed. “I don’t know how to explain it… I’m still trying to understand myself, but… I feel like I belong with them.”

“And what about us?” Drek asked. “Is everything we’ve developed together these past deca-phoebs just… nothing to you? Are we not your family? Do we mean nothing to you?”

“You mean everything to me.” Pidge reminded, going and hugging Drek once more. “And it hurts to do this… but I have to leave… and it’d be cruel and selfish of me to ask you two to join me… and it’d hurt me in the end if I remained...”

“Pidge, please, you can’t do this.” Drek pleaded. “You can’t leave; if you betray the empire, they’ll kill you. Emperor Zarkon will kill you.”

“He’s not that kind.” She didn’t want to admit it, but if she had been captured by Zarkon, she wished he would be kind enough to kill her. “He’d send me to the druids… to Haggar…” She looked up at the other teen. “I can’t go back to them… I can’t go back there...”

“Pidge...”

“Drek.” Kullo had been silent through most of the matter, but he hadn’t been idle. He was watching Pidge, observing how she moved, how she spoke, and how she felt. He noticed that she didn’t seem to be in physical pain; she didn’t appear to have one of those notorious headaches she hated so much. But more than that, he saw the light in her eyes that had slowly dimmed over time. “Pidge is back… our Pidge is back.” He said as he gently put a hand on each of their shoulders. He then looked down at Pidge, smiling. “And if we want her to be safe… we can’t let the druids have her again. Everything changed because of them… and we’ve seen how they made her feel when we were younger.” They weren’t much younger, about eleven deca-phoebs at that time.

Kullo hugged them both before getting Drek to let go of Pidge. “We’ll do what we can… just… don’t get caught, okay?”

“Yeah. Thanks, Kullo… Drek.” Pidge smiled. Under her visor, a few tears fell. “I hope we can meet again.” she said softly. She then ran off. She wished they could go with her, but she was honest when she said she couldn’t be that selfish. She didn’t want them to get hurt or anything. She didn’t want the empire to harm them for being traitors and she prayed to whatever deity she remembered learning about from ancient times that they would be safe.

Pidge found the cells with ease. “Matt?” she called softly. “Where are you?”

“Pidge?” There was a small window in each cell door. Matt’s face appeared in one of them. “Pidge! You’re okay!”

“I should be saying that about you!” Pidge ran to the door, happy to see her brother. “Don’t worry, I’ll get you out. Is Krolia with you?”

“Yeah… and a bit sore...”

“I’m fine.” Krolia called from inside. “Nothing a little rest can’t fix.”

“And a healing pod when we get back to the castle, no arguments.” Matt responded.

“Just give me a moment; I’ll get the door open. Then we need to get the other prisoners and get everyone to the lion.” Pidge assured, getting to the control panel. Prison cells on a planetary base weren’t too different from ones on a ship, but it would still take some work. To be honest, she hoped that Krolia would be well enough to help after this since she was Galra and it would respond to her and the others wouldn’t need to rely on Pidge having to take a moment to get into them.

Pidge could hear the clunking metal. Armor? No. Sentries. Soldiers and cadets had more important things to do at the base, so of course sentries, who could work without tiring, would maintain the cell block. She tried to work faster, but the sentry rounded the corner.

“Halt!” the sentry called out. Before it could try to apprehend Pidge, it went down, an energy blade having been thrown and right into its head.

“Huh?!” Pidge and Matt were both shocked. Then the small paladin, who who could from her position, looked down the hall on the opposite side to see Drek standing up straight after having thrown the blade. “Drek? Kullo?” she asked.

“I know you said it’d be selfish to ask us to join you,” Drek commented, “but not asking is just going to make Kullo cry.”

“Hey, you were ready to cry, too.” Kullo hissed.

“Me? Cry?” Drek asked. “Never.”

“Care to fight Pidge then?”

“Umm...” Drek was stunned. “Ahem… anyway, Kullo, get the access code from the sentry.”

“Right.” Kullo responded, doing as told while Drek went to Pidge.

“You’re going to get into trouble if you help me.” Pidge reminded him.

“C’mon, when one of us got into trouble before, all three of us did.” Drek smirked. “Besides, they’ll need to catch us first.”

Pidge smiled softly. “Thanks, Drek.”

Watching them both through the small window, Matt was smiling a bit, though it almost looked smug. “You know,” he spoke, “as lovely as this is, we’re still imprisoned over here.”

“Whoa, he does look like you!” Drek hadn’t noticed Matt until then and he saw the Earthling.

“Got the code.” Kullo responded. “If you’ll excuse me...” He got to the panel and put in the code before putting his hand on the pad, getting the cell to open up. “We’re getting the others?”

“Yeah; we can’t abandon them.” Pidge assured. With a nod, Kullo went around to the other cells that had prisoners in them, getting them open and assuring the poor souls that it would be fine, that they’re being rescued.

“We need to find the green lion to get out of here then.” Matt pointed out, going into the cell and helping Krolia stand up as she held onto her side. She had taken a beating when they were apprehended, partially because she tried to fight but especially because she was a Galran against the empire.

“Hmm… where would they keep it?” Drek asked. “There are different ship hangers for different purposes...”

“I can find it; Green’s been calling out for me, she’ll lead me to where we need to go.” Pidge assured, ignoring Drek’s questioning _say-what-now_ face. Pidge looked to the other prisoners there; exhausted and scared, but otherwise they were capable of walking. There weren’t too many, so it wouldn’t prove too difficult helping them through. “We need to stick close but be cautious. Drek, I need you to keep an eye on the back of the group. Matt, can you get the middle? Kullo, you can take Krolia and help support her.”

“I can move well enough on my own.” Krolia commented. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Kullo to help her, but rather she felt she really would be fine on her own.

“I’m not risking losing anyone in this mission.” Pidge responded with a hardened look in her eyes.

“I suggest listening, ma’am.” Kullo chuckled, moving in to help support Krolia on one side. “Pidge is as stubborn as she is clever. And when it comes to missions and making sure as many as possible, hopefully even everyone, makes it out okay, she really shows results.”

Drek claimed the blaster that the fallen sentry had as well as his blade. He then handed his melee weapon to Matt. “Press here to activate it.” he said, arming him with that. He then went to the back of the group, ready to keep an eye on things.

Pidge watched the others for a few seconds, making sure they were indeed ready. “Then let’s move.” She took the lead, following the call she heard inside her mind, listening to Green telling her how to locate her. Having grown up constantly finding her way to the lion, even when she would be at Central Command and would go through the vast corridors to return to Sendak’s ship and back to Green, it was an easy task.

They had to go fairly slow, partially because of the weary prisoners, partially because Pidge was using this as a stealth operation. While typically the Galra go in head first and ready to fight, they were even trained to be stealthy, going slow, easy, and without being tracked; sometimes victory did not call for an all out battle.

“There’s Green.” Pidge commented, hiding around the corner.

“I’d expect her to be heavily guarded...” Matt admitted.

“She’s at a Galra base and no one here probably had a reason to suspect I’d steal my own lion.” Pidge admitted. She then looked around when she heard the alarms start up. “And they probably found the cells empty.” She looked back to see sentries coming into the hanger from other entrances and a group coming in behind them. “Matt, Kullo, get the others to the lion! She should let you in. Drek, cover them.”

“Copy that!” Matt responded, taking the lead. The lion was close enough, they didn’t have too much to worry about, especially with Drek utilizing the blaster he confiscated.

Pidge went at a couple of sentries, using her bayard to take them down. She listened for Green to come alive, opening up and letting the others seek refuge inside her. Pidge waited until the others were safe inside.

“Pidge! We gotta go now!” Drek called, standing on the green lion’s ramp at the mouth, Matt further in and watching for his sister. Pidge shot her bayard at Green before pulling herself in, landing next to the Galran teen. “Show off.”

“Jealous.” Pidge teased before running in and heading up to the cockpit where Kullo and Krolia were waiting. “The others?”

“Secure in the hold.” Matt informed.

“Um, guys? We didn’t open up the bay doors.” Kullo reminded.

“Don’t worry, I can make my own exit.” Pidge assured. She got the green lion to move and ready to take off. Then she shot at one of the bay doors a few times, destroying it.

“Of course you destroyed a door.” Kullo sighed.

“Heh, takes you back to camp, huh?” Drek snickered.

With her escape route open and ready, she flew right out of the hanger and away from the base. “Okay, now, we gotta move quick before they mobilize.” Pidge responded. “Or hope for a miracle.”

“Um… what’s that?” Drek asked. A miracle? Close enough. A wormhole opened up in front of them.

“Our ticket out of here; hold on!” Pidge called, going through before anything could even try to get out of it. She sped through the wormhole and nearly crashed into the yellow lion when she emerged.

**“Pidge! You actually came through!”** Hunk called out. **“We were about to go through to get you, but then Allura told us something was coming through, so we waited in case we had to fight an-”**

**“What Hunk is trying to say is that we’re so glad to see you.”** Lance commented.

“Phew… we made it.” Pidge let out a pleased sigh.

**“Pidge, you okay? Are Matt and Mom with you?”** Keith inquired, worried for everyone.

“Still alive, still kicking, we’re going to need some healing pods, and… well… I have extra company.” Pidge commented.

**“Bring the green lion in and we’ll meet you at your hanger.”** Allura stated. **“And Pidge, I’m so glad you’re back and safe. We were all worried but Haxus and Kolivan...”** The princess was silent. **“Oh… well… they’re already heading down to your hanger, I think; they were the most worried.”**

“I’ll be in soon.” Pidge said. “I’ll… be home soon.” She smiled. Home. The castle was her home. Not the structure itself, really, but the people she loved. Even better, she now had Drek and Kullo with her.


	28. A Growing Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Allura is cautious about the addition of two new Galra. Meanwhile, the other Paladins and Matt are excited to find out that Pidge has friends that aren't as evil as the majourity of the empire.

Pidge had friends. As in she actually had two friends she liked and was close to. This was somewhat known in the group, Pidge having mentioned them a few times, but to actually see them and how Pidge stayed close to the two other kits, it was still shocking to the other Earthlings.

Allura watched them closely as the others sat in the common room. When Pidge returned to the castle, the first priority was to get Krolia and the other prisoners they rescued checked on and into healing pods. Krolia assured them she didn’t need a pod after she was found to just have some bruised ribs. It hurt, but she assured them that she would be fine. Then it was on to the two others. Allura didn’t know how to feel at first seeing Pidge bring two more Galra back with her, but then she was told that they were just kits, just like Pidge.

“You’re wary.” Haxus responded, leaning against the wall next to the princess.

“I know I shouldn’t, some of you are Galra, too, and our allies.” Allura commented. “But… they were raised in the empire with the intention that they’d be soldiers.”

“As was Pidge, but she changed her ways and found her place.” Kolivan reminded as he joined them. “However… Haxus, what do you know of those two?” Even Kolivan was wary; depending on the kit and even their family, some were easier to trust than others. He kept his eye mainly on Drek. The boy seemed so familiar, but he couldn’t quite place it.

“Kullo is the youngest kit of Commander Pralnok and Doctor Alniz.” Haxus stated. “Despite his family’s reputation, he doesn’t show any interest in fighting or harming others. As Pidge once told me, _his heart is as soft as his fur_. He does, however, show to have a good memory for codes, can speak different language, even non-Galran and ancient Galran ones, and he’s always been kind and compassionate when it came down to being with his friends, which were Pidge and Drek. To put it this way, rating him on a _bloodthirstiness scale_ of one to five, everyone, himself included, would rate him as a zero.”

“Drek is a bit more of a showoff and very competitive. Like Pidge, he is a fighter.” Haxus continued, moving onto the next cadet. “However, most in the empire have already shunned him.” This sparked curiosity in Kolivan and Allura both. “Many assume he will betray the empire one day.” Which he technically did. “It came to be when others would learn of his parentage. His parents were Blades as well. Dryk and Lokzi.”

Kolivan hitched his breath. He knew their names all too well. “Dryk is Ryl’s brother...” he commented. He looked to Drek once more. No wonder he looked so familiar; he knew the boy’s family. “Drek’s Bibi… Ryl… was on the same station as Pidge and her parents… They were close to the Holt family.”

Allura listened. It saddened her that Drek was left orphaned by the empire he tried to be loyal to before and that many judged him based on what other did, but more than that, she was amazed that Fate would put the two children together. The previous generation had known each other and in the end, the next generation would be friends.

Allura watched the trio of friends, happily grouped together as they talked with the Earthlings. Though snuggling Pidge, Kullo looked a little shy and nervous, not seeming to be used to others or a large group. Drek, though, was far more outgoing and relaxed, though he did stay close to Pidge. Those three seemed rather inseparable. And noticing that part, Allura couldn’t bring herself to even ask if Kolivan had a plan for where the other two kits should be.

“About the children...” Allura started to say.

“Princess, before you continue, I would like to give my opinion.” Haxus was the one to interrupt her. “Pidge responds so well to those two. She’s known them since she was eleven and while a few deca-phoebs doesn’t seem all that long, it still was enough for them to bond. She’s close to them and feels comfortable around them. And honestly, I understand that you’d be worried about if they’d continue showing loyalty to the empire, but I think they cherish their friendship with one another more than loyalty to anything else.” He sighed. “So if you would, please allow them to remain here in the castle. I know war is no place for kits, even the empire doesn’t send kits this young into war, but they would be good for Pidge, especially to have people she already knows and the same age as she is.”

Allura smiled. “Honestly, I was going to suggest letting them stay here, too.” She chuckled a bit, glad that Haxus was on the same boat as she was. “Kolivan, I understand you’re in charge of the Blade of Marmora, but perhaps even you could agree?”

Kolivan smiled softly and nodded his head. “It would be a good idea to let them remain together.” he commented. He felt that the presence of Drek and Kullo could perhaps help Pidge relax and fully settle in; he also felt that being with Pidge would help them adjust to the decision they made to leave the empire. “Another suggestion, sleeping arrangements may need to be altered. They’re still young, young kits typically like to sleep in groups. I’m assuming they’re no different.”

“If anything, I think they’re a bit clingier; Pidge likes the comfort and company, Kullo doesn’t like sleeping alone, and Drek is protective of them both.” Haxus informed, having made that analysis over the course of years and hearing of their behavior and choices; even with the last time they were together when Pidge was unwell, they kept close.

“I’ll talk with Coran about it later; I’m sure he can come up with arrangements for them.” Allura chuckled. “And perhaps extra clothes for the boys so they don’t have to wear flight suits and those shorts all the time.”

Much like Pidge had when she was first in the castle, Drek and Kullo were wearing shorts and sleevless tops, even going with green so as to match Pidge’s colour scheme. They sat together on one of the couch segments, the other Eartlings with them, talking and getting to know the two. They had yet to get the news that Drek and Kullo would be allowed to remain in the castle, but some quickly assumed that was the case, especially when they found out that though much taller, they were all the same age as their youngest paladin.

“So, this means we’ve got two more people here.” Lance mused. “And they’re both younger than me… Yes! Not the youngest! I mean, I know Pidge is younger than me, too, but with two more, I probably won’t even be put in the _younger branch_ grouping.” He then yelped when Krolia ruffled his hair. “Hey! Tia!” he whined.

“You’re still a kit, even if three others are younger than you.” Krolia teased as she went over and sat down, pressing a cold-pack to her side to help with the bruising.

“I still find it amazing.” Hunk gushed a bit. “Pidge mentioned you guys at times, but to actually meet you, it’s so nice.”

“You guys are acting like it’s a huge surprise that I have friends that are decent.” Pidge grumbled, crossing her arms. She made a strange noise of surprise when Matt pulled her away from the others and into a tight embrace. “Matt!”

“Aw! It’s so cute and adorable! My sweet baby sister has friends!” Matt cheered, snuggling Pidge. Though she complained at first, she surrendered and even enjoyed the attention. “It just makes me so happy. At first I was worried at how lonely you’d be or that you would struggle bonding with others, but then you have friends and you care for them, I’m so happy.”

Kullo watched with wide eyes and an adoring smile. It was cute how excited Matt was about Pidge having friends. He didn’t care that this came as a shock to the others, not now that he saw how happy everyone was. “Aw, it just warms my heart to see a brother and sister happily hug.”

“Brother and sister, they really are rela-wait...” Drek looked over at Kullo for a few ticks and let that sink in. He then turned to Pidge. “You’re a girl?!” He practically shouted that, startling the others, even Princess Allura who was talking with some of the Blades. “What… how?!”

“Um… chromosomes?” Pidge was confused, not understanding why Drek was so shocked.

“Drek, we’ve known her since we were eleven; it seriously took you that long to figure out she was a girl?” Kullo asked. “I mean, yeah, I get that everyone used different pronouns for her and she never bothered correcting anyone, but...”

“We bunked together!”

“Camp was co-ed.”  
“And she’s an entirely different species! How was I supposed to know what a girl of her species looks like? Even now, she looks like the others to some degree.”

“Boy and girl kits of our species look a lot alike until we grow up, too. Even then, some still look similar enough.”

“Didn’t you have that same issue when you were that young?” Antok whispered to Krolia.

“It wasn’t until I was thirty deca-phoebs that others could determine I was more feminine looking.” the other responded, smirking some. She then looked to the Earthling boys, noticing them just looking shocked. It wasn’t that they thought Pidge was a boy, too, right? No, that wasn’t it. “Okay, kits, what has you stunned? You’re more silent than usual and having raised one of you and helped with the others, I’m suspicious of that.”

“A silent kit is a suspicious kit.” Antok pointed out with a nod of his head.

“It’s Pidge! No wonder she was okay with trying to change in front of us!” Matt exclaimed, finally letting Pidge go free from all the hugging. “She was probably used to it… oh gods… co-ed? Everything, even sleeping, was co-ed?!”

“Oh, come now, you boys changed in front of each other, too.” Krolia crossed her arms; a small hiss said she was still sore as she went back to keeping the cold-pack in place. “Still do last I knew.”

“Yes, but we’re all the same sex.” Shiro pointed out.

“Ugh, are all boys of my species this finicky?” Pidge inquired. “Jeez, not like there’s any difference between us other than, from what I’ve learned, reproductive capabilities.” She pouted a bit as she went back to sit down with Kullo and Drek. “If it helps, think of me as a boy. I don’t mind.”

“Pidge… it doesn’t always work that way.” Matt deadpanned.

“Looks like we’re gonna have to get used to the big brother brigade.” Kullo snickered. He then looked to Drek, the other hiding his face with his ears down. “Drek?”

“Maybe he’s embarrassed by all this, too?” Pidge snickered a bit before nudging him. “It doesn’t change anything, right? We still get to sleep together?” She ignored the noise that Matt made as he grabbed Shiro’s arm.

“Well… yeah… I guess nothing has changed… though I guess you’re more sister-like than brother-like.” Drek commented. “Or maybe just go in between and say _sibling_.” He seemed to ponder it before leaning against Pidge. “Of course. As long as you keep that Yupper of yours on your side of the pile; it smells funny.”

“Jerk.” Pidge playfully shoved Drek, causing him to chuckle.

Matt watched the two shove each other a bit, teasing one another. Screw the shock and amazement of seeing Galra with this fun side to them, what really intrigued him was the bond Pidge had with Drek and Kullo. He was pleased to see she had friends, but he found out that they were more than friends. While he didn’t grow up with a younger sibling, Pidge having been taken away, he did grow up with the other paladins and he even saw Lance interact with his siblings.

Drek, Pidge, and Kullo were definitely not friends. They were siblings through and through and that was even better.

“Matt?” Shiro asked, nudging his friend. “You okay?”

“I thought I got my sister finally.” Matt commented. “Looks like I’ve got a sister and two little brothers instead.” And he didn’t mind one bit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, a heartfelt chapter. No angst. No feels. Just wholesome goodness and even some (in my opinion) comedy. Yay!  
> Also, the doodle comic with it is not fully compliant to things since it was drawn long before the chapter was written, but I decided to add it in anyway.


	29. We're a Team

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Allura is happy that Pidge is back home and loves the positive effect having Kullo and Drek around has had on her. But the princess notices that Pidge seems to be acting cold to her. But why?

Allura paid attention to Pidge’s behaviour. At first she thought that the green paladin was just thrilled to be back at the castle with her brother, back with the others and even had her best friends with her, but something was odd. Pidge spoke with the others, but she almost looked pained whenever she would meet the princess’ gaze. She hardly even uttered a word to the Altean.

This worried her.

“Did I do something wrong?” Allura asked as she sat at the vanity table in her room. She brushed through her hair as she spoke with the mice. “It’s almost like she’s avoiding me. I mean, maybe I’m paranoid, maybe she just wants to spend time with Drek and Kullo.”

With Drek and Kullo there, Pidge almost seemed like an entirely different person. It wasn’t bad; Allura felt warm and happy for Pidge, seeing the green paladin grinning so much, happily clinging to her friends, even even trying more things in the kitchen. Hardly a quintant since they came back after the paladins were all separated, and Pidge was just full of positive emotion.

That positive emotion didn’t stop her from worrying, though. There was so much to worry about. Pidge seemed to be avoiding her and Allura had come face-to-face with Sendak. Did the green paladin know he was okay? And even still trying to get her? She wanted to hide that fact, but she knew she would only drive a wedge between them more if she held out on that information. That wedge somehow appeared and Allura didn’t know why; she didn’t want to make it worse.

“Maybe I should try talking to Pidge tomorrow.” Allura asked. “But how do I get her to stop and talk with me?”

Chuchule, the pink mouse, squeaked up at her before motioning to the smallest, Chulatt, and the leanest, Plachu, mice as they pretended to fight.

“Her morning training?” Allura asked. She realized the mice had a point. Whenever possible, Pidge spent time on the training deck, training against the others. Her being there, it would be the opportune time to try and talk to the green paladin, right? “Perhaps I’ll try then. Maybe if she’s sitting by watching the others train or I could even try while sparring with her; she may actually stop to talk with me.”

With her plan in mind, Allura finished brushing her hair and went to bed. She struggled to sleep, though, wondering what could have happened to put a wedge between them. She thought they were bonding. Yes, they bonded over tragic things and that may not have been the best, but they were still growing close, the small paladin even seeing her as a sister.

When the next day cycle started, Allura donned her flight suit and headed to the training deck, hoping to catch Pidge there. She arrived in time to see Pidge tackle Drek to the ground, her her fist at his throat. Seeing Pidge like that and the focus in her honey coloured eyes, it sent a chill down the princess’ spine. Pidge almost didn’t seem like she was capable of emotions as she sat on her knees, straddling Drek’s chest.

“Drek,” Haxus spoke, “when you’re being tackled like that,” he put his arms up a bit, bent at the elbow, “you put your arms up, ready to block as well as push your foe off more easily. It’s easy to knock Pidge off, no offense sweetie, but others will not be as small or as light. Like this, you’d be pinned, unable to even maneuver to hit them if you’re still armed.” He went over and picked Pidge up by the shoulders. “Fix your position.”

“Yes, sir.” Drek complied and did as told. Haxus nodded and put Pidge back down.

“Like this, the one who tackled you is in an awkward position. You can push up and get them over your head.” Haxus pointed out. Without being told to do so, Drek pushed his arms upward and flung Pidge off of him, sending her face first into the ground.

“Why do I need to learn this move?” Drek asked as he sat up and rubbed the back of his head; it was a little sore from when Pidge tackled him.

“Because, even when fully disarmed, most will not surrender. They live by _victory or death_ , remember?”

Allura went over to the wall where the other paladins, Matt, and even Kullo were seated, the group, minus Kullo, looking a little scuffed up since they had been training. Nearby was Kolivan and Antok, the two watching over the sparring sessions. “It seems to be a training day, hmm?”

“Indeed.” Kolivan nodded. “It’s good to make sure the others keep up with their skills; this is no time to be laid back and fall behind.”

“I see.” Allura agreed with that; it was definitely good for them to train. But one-on-on matches? They were a team; she felt they should be working together. No, perhaps this was good; just in case, it would benefit to know how to fight in different types of battles. “But you’re not training with weapons?”

“There may be times where they’re unarmed; it’s good to learn to fight without weapons.” Kolivan explained. He eyed the princess for a moment. “Perhaps you would like to train with us? Pidge has plenty of energy to burn off.”

Allura wanted to simply talk with Pidge, but she was prepared to enter a sparring match with her, too. “I think that would be nice.” she commented.

“Drek, return and catch your breath; Pidge, are you ready for one more match?” Kolivan called out.

Pidge looked over. “I can handle more than one.” she commented, watching Allura closely.

“One more, then you take a break.” Kolivan’s tone said that it was final and he wouldn’t take any negotiations on the matter.

“Fine.” Pidge sighed. She waited until Drek was back at the wall and Allura was in the middle of the room with her. Closer and facing the green paladin, Allura could see a certain coldness in her gaze, thus telling the princess that something was wrong.

“Begin.” Haxus declared as he backed off.

Before Allura could do anything, Pidge went at her, quick and light on her feet and trying to punch the princess. She may have been small and young, but Pidge definitely learned to fight. While kits typically wouldn’t see battle for a while longer, even most cadets wouldn’t for some time, they still had to learn, especially Pidge. Pidge was, after all, a paladin of Voltron and had once been expected to fight alongside Zarkon.

Pidge was definitely a warrior.

And she was definitely upset about something.

“If I didn’t know any better,” Allura commented, blocking some hits that she couldn’t dodge, looking for an opportunity to get off of the defensive and move in for the offensive, “I’d say you’re upset.”

“Last I check, you don’t seem to know better.” Pidge bit out. She dropped down and actually swiped out a kick; she managed to trip the princess. When she went to attack again, Allura got herself flipped over and back on her feet.

Hearing Pidge say that, Allura definitely knew something was wrong. Something happened and she wanted, no, needed to know why. Part of her worried that it happened when she ended up at the other base. Had the enemy done something to her?

“Well I won’t if you don’t tell me what’s wrong.” Allura told her, managing to get the upper hand, kicking Pidge back. She winched in doing so, hoping she didn’t hit her too hard when she saw Pidge fall back. The girl was resilient and bounced back.

“If I have to tell you, then you really don’t know anything!” Pidge jumped at the princess, pinning her just as she had done to Drek moments earlier. Allura didn’t learn from what Haxus told him, so her arms were pinned. Pidge was tiny, though, it was easy to push her off. But something caught the princess’ attention. Pidge started crying. “You really don’t get it… do you?”

“Pidge?” Allura asked. She noticed Haxus try to step toward them, but he looked to the side and stopped; she assumed Kolivan motioned for him to leave them be. “Pidge, what’s wrong? I don’t understand.”

“Idiot… big stupid idiot...” Pidge mumbled, shifting her position back some and letting the princess have full access to her hands; she leaned forward more and rested her head on Allura’s chest. “You made us split up more… you made yourself the sacrifice so we could get away...”

Allura blinked. Pidge was upset because… she helped them escape? It didn’t make sense.

“We could have found a way to get out of there together… we would have...” Pidge mumbled. She didn’t resist when Allura managed to slip out more and sit up; she didn’t pull away when the princess hugged her. “Instead, you just let yourself be captured… you could have been killed… you could have been tortured… there was no telling what Sendak would have done to you...”

“You knew he...”

“I saw him when Keith was dragging me away.” Pidge mumbled.

“Pidge… I had to let myself be captured; I couldn’t let them have you again.” Allura reminded, her hold tightening. “I couldn’t let them hurt you; you’ve endured so much, I felt I could take some of the burden and protect you.”

“If you want to protect me, then work with me… don’t just make decisions like this that could get yourself hurt or killed on your own… there’s always a way to get through things… always...” Pidge mumbled. She wrapped her limbs around Allura, holding on as much as possible as she kept crying. “I’ve already lost a lot...” Her parents. Sendak to some extent. Her freedom for so long. “I don’t want to lose more. I don’t want to lose anyone… you guys are my family… I can’t lose you...”

Allura finally understood. Pidge was afraid to lose the others and would fight hard to keep them all together. “I’m sorry, Pidge… I didn’t consider that.” she admitted. “I just wanted you safe, but I didn’t think of how it would look to you...” She ran her fingers through Pidge’s hair. “Will you forgive me?”

“Yeah… I do forgive you… just… please… please don’t do that again.” Pidge mumbled, not yet pulling away. “We’re a team… we’re supposed to act like one.”

“Of course.” Allura nodded. “Of course we are.”

Kolivan and Haxus decided to quietly end training for the quintant, having the others leave so that Pidge and Allura could hug it out and settle down. “Pidge seems to have adapted to being a team player very well.” Kolivan pointed out after leaving the training deck.

“While she loves her alone time, she always has been like that.” Haxus pointed out. “Her first simulated mission at camp, the appointed leader was ready to make _sacrifices_ , losing certain members of the team. She had usurped command, keeping each teammate’s status as _alive_ and completed the simulation with no losses and beating the old record.”

“Impressive.” Kolivan smiled, looked proud of the kit. “At least she’s able to work with a team and even wants to keep everyone safe and together as much as possible.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was one idea I was especially eager for. Showing Pidge and Allura fighting only for Pidge to be emotional, it just seemed important to me. I hope you guys enjoyed.


	30. Competitive Teens and a Group of Nerds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From competitive teenagers to a trio of nerds, the group is getting along and looking after each other all while making things fun. However, they're still at war and the fun is always stopped.

Lance was ready for the shot, prepared to take it. Just a few more seconds until the sentry was in the right spot. Three. Two. O-

“Hah!” Drek tackled the sentry and jabbed a short sword into its head, getting it to shut down. “Easy stuff.” he commented, twirling the weapon around. While he still had his blade from his mother in his possession, having thankfully kept it hidden on his person while a cadet at the Klaumia base, he felt the need for a different weapon to use when on the field; from the Altean armory in the castle, he chose a sword, used to fighting in close combat; though if necessary, he wasn’t against using a blaster, either, having picked one up on occasion while fighting.

Fighting. It took some convincing, but if Pidge was going to be out on the battlefield, he wanted to be there, too; he wanted to fight at her side and help make sure she was safe. She had dealt with enough in her life, she needed all the allies she could get. That and he did like competing against Lance when on the field.

“Hey! Drek! Why don’t you stay in your own zone!? That sentry was mine!” Lance called out.

“Hey, you gotta learn to keep up.” Drek smirked. “Or are you sore that I’ve got a higher score than you do?”

“Ugh, boys, this isn’t a game.” Pidge grumbled, rubbing the space between her eyes. She stopped and looked up at the sky, worry glistening in her eyes.

“Pidge?” Matt inquired from further to the side, concern crossing his face as he observed his sister. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m just… hmm...” Pidge sighed and shook her head. “I don’t know, this just seems like it’s too easy. Not the mission, I mean, but in general.”

“You’re worried because Sendak hasn’t shown up?” Hunk inquired, wincing when he noticed the others gesturing for him to keep quiet about that. “What? I thought-”

“Hunk’s right; you guys leave him alone.” Pidge told the others. “It’s concerning… I’d expect him to show up any moment… it’d be like him to do that, especially if given the order… Him or Zarkon.” Pidge went back to watching the sky, only looking away when Matt approached her and put a hand on her shoulder.

“We won’t let anything happen to you.” he reminded her. “We’re a team and we’ve got each others’ back, even yours.” He then smirked. “Besides, I’m your big brother. No way am I doing to just let anyone show up and hurt you or take you back.”

Pidge smiled sincerely at first, her brother’s love really warming her heart. She then smirked and shoved him, nearly knocking him over in the process. “Hey, save some of that protectiveness for the others and even yourself. I bet five hundred GAC that you’d get yourself kidnapped and I’d have to go out to who knows where to rescue you.”

At first Matt was surprised, but he found himself laughing when he realized Pidge was showing a more playful side of herself. “Not if I rescue myself first.”

“Oh yeah? And who was it that came to your aid back on Klaumia?”

“Hey, I’m sure Krolia and I would’ve found a way, you were just lucky to get to us first.”

Pidge laughed before looking to the others. “So, we got this area clear?”

**“According to these scans, while there are some sentries still around, you have it all clear; the Galra have retreated.”** Coran informed over the comm. **“Good work everyone!”**

“So there are more sentries to locate and take down?” Drek smirked. “Hey Lance, bet I can take out more than you.”

“Oh, you’re on!” Lance responded. “Loser cleans the cryo-pods!

“I’ll take that bet!”

Shiro chuckled a bit how competitive those two were. “Well, at least they’re getting along.” he commented, amused by them. With Kullo and Drek warming up to working with the paladins alongside Pidge, he felt it was a good thing for them to have social skills with one another. Competition and being show offs definitely helped Lance and Drek bond; it was almost amusing, too, that this was the blue paladin and the blue coloured Galra.

“Hey, don’t think you two can leave me out of this.” Keith interjected, joining in their competition to see who could take out more.

“Of course.” Shiro mused. With Keith joining in, so long as he and Lance didn’t start bickering, things were often interesting and amusing with them. Though one time during training they did, Drek simply told them that if they didn’t knock it off, he would send Pidge after them; somehow that did the trick.

Of course, Drek wasn’t the only one finding a place when socializing with the paladins; Kullo definitely found a comfortable spot, seeming to get along with anyone who would just sit and talk with him. He especially did well with Hunk, the two a soft and sweet duo who could spend vargas in the kitchen talking and cooking, or at least Hunk trying to teach Kullo how to cook.

“While they do that,” Pidge stated, “Kullo, you up to getting into the computers with me? There maybe valuable intel the team could use.”

“Oh, right.” Kullo nodded. Though he was glad to be a part of something great and he didn’t actually have to fight, he often was on standby in the castle or green lion or alongside the others, keeping an eye out for what they need or could use, he still felt a little nervous about some of what they did. He understood just how bad the empire was, since returning with Pidge he had seen some of the planets they were liberating, but he still felt nervous.

“It’ll be fine; it’ll just help us so we can save more lives.” Pidge reminded gently. “Hunk, you’ve got our backs?”

“You can count on me.” Hunk declared.

“Matt, you go with them and help out; I’m going to make sure our trio of hotheads don’t get too out of hand.” Shiro instructed.

“Copy that.” Matt nodded and went with what he was deeming the _nerdy trio_. It was sweet how the two sets of trios could mix and match so well and still seem like they were meant to be together. It made him smile.

“It’s a smaller base,” Pidge commented when they found the main station that would hold information, “so there probably won’t be much, but any bit could help. Ku, can you get the access codes?”

“Shouldn’t be too hard.” Kullo nodded as he went to one of the computers and worked with it. While Pidge could hack into the systems, being a Galra and good at memorizing and locating codes, that made the job easier. “Okay, cycling through… and code sent.”

“Good work!” Pidge praised, making Kullo grin and twitch his ears. “Now, it shouldn’t be long before we extract the data; we’ll worry abou-” She stopped and winced a bit, a sharp pain going through her head.

“Pidge?” Matt asked, going over. “Are you okay?” He looked concerned, fearing that Pidge was having those headache again. Ever since they had rescued Allura and narrowly escaped Zarkon’s base, she hadn’t had any headaches, seeming to be clear. He didn’t want her to go back to that and suffer from it.

“I… I don’t think so… it was like a brief jab...” She looked around, a sense of anxiety filling her. “I think we need to get out of here...”

Kullo watched Hunk and Matt, seeing them debate if they should do as Pidge suggested. The green paladin was holding herself, seeming even smaller than usual; he knew this very well. “We should listen to Pidge.” he commented. “I think we’ve got the data downloaded, so we should get out of here.”

“Shiro, do you copy?” Matt asked into the comms. “We’re getting out of here.”

**“What’s the matter?”** Shiro inquired.

“Pidge feels that something is wrong; that’s our cue that we should go.” Matt responded.

Shiro was silent for a moment, but then he spoke up. **“We can’t risk this planet, though; we just liberated it and these people, we need to make sure everything is fine.”** he informed. **“We’ll get back to the lions for now.”**

“Huh? But Shi-” Matt stopped when he felt Pidge grab his arm.

“It’s fine… it’s probably just me being paranoid.” Pidge gave her brother a sheepish smile.

Kullo pouted a bit. He knew Pidge well enough; sometimes she reacted badly, other times she would dismiss when something was wrong and just say she’s overreacting or tired. He then picked her up in a hug, making her yelp. “We’ll be lucky if that’s the case.” he commented. “But you’re cautious and listening to your gut. Er, your head.”

“You can put me down now, Ku.” Pidge chuckled a bit. She looked to him when he did. “Thanks.”

“I’m really hoping it’s the paranoia, but yeah, definitely getting to the lions is a good idea.” Hunk mumbled.

“That’s what we’re doing.” Matt informed before taking the lead, keeping an eye out for any sort of danger. The lions were thankfully not too far, but before they could reach them, Pidge fell to her knees, holding her head. “Pidge? Pidge!” He was instantly by his sister, checking her over with Kullo while Hunk had his bayard activated, ready to defend them. “You need to hang on, Pidge; you need to fight this.” He bit his lip. “Allura? Coran, do you hear me?”

**“Loud and clear, Matt; what’s the matter?”** Allura questioned.

“Pidge is reacting to something… someone… I get the feeling we’re about to have some unwanted company.” Matt feared that Haggar was going to show up in a battleship. From his understanding, she was the one who put Pidge in her situation, trying to control her; at that point, he felt that Sendak would have been the lesser of two evils for Pidge to deal with. “It’s okay, you’re strong, Pidge. You can fight this.”

“Matt!?” Shiro called, running over with the others, meeting up before they reached the lions. “How’s she doing?”

“Not good.” Matt shook his head.

“I’m fine… it just… stings a bit...” Pidge mumbled.

“A bit?” Drek asked. “Pidge, this reaction is worse than any of your usual headaches...”

“C’mon, we need to get you back; hopefully Green decides to fly herself so you don’t strain yourself.” Matt scooped Pidge up into her arms, the smallest paladin surprisingly not fighting him on the matter. Before he could take off and head to the green lion, he and the others all froze. They half expected a battleship, several even, to show up; the last thing they expected was Zarkon’s command ship. “Oh shit...”

“Get to the lions! Now!” Shiro ordered. “Allura! We need to get out of here now!”

**“Roger that, we’ll work on getting a wormhole ready and space between us and them!”** Allura responded.

Matt went to the green lion with Pidge, Drek, and Kullo, quick to put her down in her chair, but she didn’t take control. The young paladin curled in on herself, the pain growing intense. Thankfully Green decided on her own to get out of there, flying to the castle and hiding out in her hanger.

It took several moments, but Allura got the castle through a wormhole. But matters got worse as they came out of it much sooner than anticipated. At least being further away, the pain Pidge felt settled down and she chose to cuddle in close with her friends while in a corner of the bridge.

“Hmm, this is a problem.” Coran sighed as he looked at the information from the castle.

“You mean why the wormhole didn’t get us as far as desired?” Shiro inquired. “What happened?”

“Well, I’ll need to go down to the teludav to check the extent, but we’ve got some damages there.”

“Teludav?” Lance asked.

“It’s the device in the castle that allows wormholes to be made.” Kullo quickly responded. The others were suddenly looking to him. “Er, sorry… I ran some of the Altean texts through a translator and started studying the ship some… sorry.”

“No need to apologize, my boy.” Coran chuckled a bit. “But that’s correct; it collects and stores Altean energy so that wormholes could be created; until I go down and check it out, there could be any number of things wrong with it. Hopefully it’ll be easy to fix, otherwise we won’t have many jumps left… and they’ll keep getting shorter until we can’t use it.”

Allura nodded as she sat down. “Then we’ll take this time to rest but also keep an eye out. There’s no telling how Zarkon located us.”

“It was probably the Galra that got away from that last planet.” Keith rationalized. “They probably contacted Zarkon and he decided to show up for the lions.” His eyes darted to Pidge; no one wanted to say it, but with that, Zarkon and Haggar were probably after Pidge again, hoping to drag her back and make her compliant with the empire again.

“That’s most likely it, so hopefully we lost them.” Shiro stated.

“That doesn’t mean we should let our guards down.” Kolivan added. “The princess is right; while resting, we need to keep an eye out for danger.”

“In the meantime, I’ll get down to check the teludav.” Coran commented.

“Pidge,” Haxus went to where his daughter was, content in Kullo’s hug with Drek leaning against her, the two looking very protective of their best friend, “do you need me here?”

Pidge watched Haxus before shaking her head. “I’ll be fine; the pain already cleared.” she said. “You’re going to help Coran?”

Haxus nodded before ruffling her hair. “Don’t strain yourself.” he told her before giving her a gentle kiss on the forehead. He then got up and went with Coran, deciding to aid him. He may not have known Altean tech as well as the mechanic and adviser of the castle-ship, but he adapted well and could follow instructions.

“Well, team, keep your wits about you and stay sharp. And Pidge, you should rest.” Shiro stated.

“I’m not helpless; I’ll be fine.” Pidge commented.

Shiro smirked a bit at that. “I didn’t say you were, but you still need rest; you’re a growing teen, after all.”

Pidge pouted. “Ugh...” she grumbled. But she didn’t protest much; she just snuggled more between the Galran teens, actually content to be there. However content she was, though, she worried about what happened. While it got them on their toes, anticipating trouble, it still scared her. Did it mean that Haggar still had control over her? Or was she trying to regain control? Pidge didn’t have the answers and it scared her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Peak sibling/friend behavior, challenging each other and making bets. While it's mentioned about Kullo getting along with Hunk (or anyone for that matter), showing Drek and Lance being competitive was fun. I'm glad I thought to throw in the bet when I reviewed the chapter for uploading.


	31. The Cookies Are Better Than Other Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From attempting to bake cookies to eluding Zarkon, the team is kept on their toes. But with the universe against them at times, is it really enough?

“What’s the status, Coran.” Allura inquired when the other Altean contacted the bridge, showing up on screen.

**“Well,** **there’s** **a bit of good news… and bad news.”** Coran sighed. **“The good news is, just about everything is in tact. The bad news is that the one thing that isn’t is something not easily replaced.”** He looked concerned. **“You see, in the teludav, there’s a magnifying beam generator. Altean energy is used with that, reflecting the power off of scaultrite lens-stones so it could powered and we can use the wormhole. Problem is, several of those lens-stones are cracked.”**

“Is that something we can get?” Hunk asked. “Like at some sort of space market or store?”

**“Probably not; scaultrite is hard to get and in the past, the only race to actually work with it were Alteans.”** Coran explained. **“Odds are, we’d be very lucky if we found any; our best place would be at an Unilu shop. Until then though, I’ll see if I can reposition the in tact ones to buy us some time.”**

“Do what you can, Coran.” Allura confirmed. “We’ll try to find a secure place to hide the castle for now.”

“We can go over our data and see if we can locate any nearby points where sales and trades occur.” Antok offered. “Swap moons aren’t as common these days, but they can still be found.”

“Hopefully something is found and they have what we need.” Allura nodded.

-+-+-+-

Pidge laid down on the counter some, her head on Kullo’s lap as he sat there. It was spacious, clean, and out of the way of Hunk working in another part of the kitchen, baking something. Pidge honestly wanted to just train or hide in the green lion hoping to take her mind off of things, but Hunk insisted she, Kullo, and Drek should join him in the kitchen, have a snack, maybe even learn to bake some. For a bit, Kullo did, helping to mix what Hunk called _dough_.

“Is it supposed to be blue?” Drek asked, sniffing the bowl some. He yelped when he was firmly tapped on the head with a spoon. “Hey!”

“Out of the dough, it’s for the cookies.” Hunk commented. “And I’m hoping so. I mean, the mix was blue.”

“I want peanut butter cookies.” Pidge mumbled. “Why can’t you make those?”

“Because I’m working with other ingredients on the ship, trying out new recipes and making use of what we already have to make supplies last.” Hunk chuckled.

Pidge sighed and looked over. She then grabbed the packet of blue powdery substance Hunk used from. Altean lettering. “What’s it even say?”

“Hmm, I don’t know; I haven’t learned Altean yet.” Kullo admitted. “You think the princess will teach me when we have calmer moments?”

“Sure, I don’t see why not. Her or Coran.” Pidge admitted. She sat up and looked at the tray Hunk was bringing out, blue disks, hot and fresh from the oven, upon it. “I don’t want to judge-”

“Lies; she judges. A lot.” Drek interjected.

“-but those don’t exactly look like cookies.”

Hunk raised an eyebrow. “And you know what cookies are supposed to look like?” None of the young cadets spoke and Pidge gave a scowl. “My point exactly.” He picked up one of his cookies to try, biting into it. Or at least he attempted to. His teeth didn’t even sink into it as he froze there.

“Bad taste?” Pidge asked as she watched the yellow paladin closely.

“I think it’s the texture.” Drek stated.

A shiver went up Hunk’s spine before he put the cookie down. He then went to a wall, braced himself and kicked it a few times as he regained himself. When he returned to the counter, he put his hands on it to support himself. “I may have overcooked them.” he finally said.

“Hmm...” Kullo dared to pick one up and put it in his mouth, testing his teeth on it, even sucking some to see if he could soften it. He let out a sigh as he put it down. “Hunk, now I’m not one to judge, that’s these two’s department,” he commented, “but I really don’t think these are food. Goodness, even my teething ring wasn’t this hard...”

“Maybe… maybe the next batch will be better?” Hunk hoped that was the case. “Man, I hope I didn’t crack a tooth; where would I even find a dentist out here?” He sighed. He then went back to work, hoping to get the second batch to be better. With his back turned, Drek decided to sneak a bit of the dough to try, but Hunk turned in time to catch him. “Hey! You shouldn’t get into the dough!”

“Just tasting it.” Drek smiled before putting the pinch in his mouth. He chewed it before freezing. He then ran to the sink and spat it out before proceeding to rinse out his mouth. “Ugh! Are you certain it’s food? Even the dough… ugh...”

“Wow, something Drek can’t consume.” Pidge commented, looking stunned. She gave Hunk a thumbs up. “Congratulations. This guy has been able to stomach everything, and now this is something he can’t even get past his mouth.”

“I don’t think that’s reassuring...” Hunk mumbled. He went to check the batch, finding that they turned hard very quickly. “Hmm… maybe you’re right. I probably should’ve run the package through a translator, huh?”

“That would have been better.” Kullo snickered a bit. “At least you tried.” He then looked around at the sound of an alarm. “Huh? Are we under atta-” Before he could finished, the ship shook and Pidge fell off the counter with a yelp. “Yup! Under attack!”

“C’mon! We need to get to the bridge.” Pidge called as she ran out the door.

“Isn’t she supposed to be resting?” Hunk asked.

“It’s Pidge, she doesn’t always listen.” Drek responded. He then took off after her with the others.

By the time Pidge got to the bridge, she felt a sort of pain in her head again. She did her best to shake it away, but it wasn’t going away. The princess insisted she remained on the ship while the others bought them time to escape, but Pidge wasn’t having any of it.

“Don’t worry, we’ll help her through this and keep Pidge focused.” Drek assured.

“I’m going to help Coran and Haxus then.” Matt stated. He wanted to stay and help Pidge, but she had her friends with that and he felt an extra set of hands, especially from a smaller, compared to the Galran and Altean, Earthling, could be helpful. “Be safe, Pidge.”

“They’ll regret messing with us when we’re trying to bake cookies.” Pidge smirked as she went for her lion, getting suited up and inside with her friends.

**“Okay, since we’ve been having some issues being Voltron near Zarkon,”** Shiro spoke over the comm, **“we’ll need to keep as separate lions. Pidge, Keith, you two focus on ships that come in too close to the castle. Hunk, Lance, you’ve got the battleships with me. Let’s do this!”**

They launched out of the castle, heading out and trying to buy enough time so that the wormhole could hopefully be functional, even if a little to get them out of there.

-+-+-+-

“Sire,” Haggar approached Zarkon, “further and further the green paladin strays. I may have another idea in getting her back.”

Zarkon watched as the lions tried to fight, defending the castle. “If we cannot collect the lions soon, will this aid us?” he inquired.

“It should; it will weaken the green paladin, keeping her from being able to fight us. With that, they won’t be able to fight as Voltron.” Haggar explained. “This would make it easier to at least collect her, bring her back to our side.”

“We need the black lion, though.”

“And in time you will pilot the black lion again.” Haggar reminded. “But for now, they are diligent and doing their best. See how the pilot flies; he is cautious of you trying to control the lion again.”

“Indeed.” Zarkon nodded, agreeing with the witch on that. “Very well. Proceed with your plan.”

“Of course.” Haggar nodded and went to where her druids were waiting, readying magic to strike at the green lion when Pidge was in the perfect spot.

-+-+-+-

“Coran, how’s it going?” Allura inquired. “We can’t hold them off for much longer.” She grunted when the barrier around the castle was struck. She looked to see that it had gone down. “Oh no, we lost the particle barrier!”

“Secondary controls are down as well.” Antok reported, keeping an eye on the castle’s systems. “And the thermal regulator went offline.”

“That’s not good.” Allura grumbled. “Coran...”

**“We’re working on it, Princess, just a few more ticks.”** Coran reported. **“It should hold for a bit, but we won’t be able to get far.”**

“Any distance is better than nothing.” Allura admitted. “Ready, Paladins? I’m opening a wormhole in three, two, one… now!” Allura got the wormhole open and the castle through. Keeping fighters off of her, the lions followed in suit. What they didn’t know though was that Zarkon’s ship neared, but not with the intention of capturing them yet. An attack was fired from his ship and went right for the green lion, hitting it and causing what looked like black lightning to surround it. “Pidge!”

**“Gah!”** Pidge cried out, physical pain seeming to actually go through her.

**“Pidge, what happened? Are you okay?”** Shiro asked.

**“We’ve got a problem!”** Drek called, though his voice barely made it through as they had static. **“Pidge is in pain an-zzt!”**

“Drek? Drek, come in! Drek? Kullo? Pidge!” Allura’s eyes went wide. She then watched on screen as the green lion descended and fell through the wormhole just as she and the others exited. “No!”

**“Pidge!”** Keith turned the red lion back around and tried to go into the wormhole, hoping to follow where Pidge went to help her, but he was forced to stop when it closed up. **“No...”**

Allura stared in horror. They lost Pidge. In the wormhole, she fell through the side somewhere and got lost. There was no telling where she went. “No, no no no...” She fell to her knees, hand covering her mouth as tears started to fall. “Pidge...”

The others returned to the castle. Matt even returned to the bridge, worried for his sister. “Allura, can’t you track the green lion? We can find Pidge with that, right?”

“It’s possible.” Allura nodded. “Sometimes there’s interference or the lion is shut down too much but...” She sighed as she started the search, hoping to locate their friends. They were just children, the trio in the green lion. She shook her head as she struggled to find them. “I’ll try again in a bit; the green lion was… I don’t know… what was that? It couldn’t have been a weapon.”

“I don’t know.” Shiro shook his head. “I didn’t even see the attack coming… but it seemed like the green lion was targeted specifically.”

“We will find her, right?” Matt asked, eyes wide. “I should have gone with her instead...”

“We aren’t giving up.” Allura assured. “We’ll find them. Hopefully wherever they landed, they’ll be safe...” She looked around the castle. “Until then, we need to work on the castle and get the teludav functional again, if at least slightly. And find out how Zarkon is tracking us.”

Matt nodded. “I’m going to let Haxus know about Pidge… and hopefully we can help Coran more; let us know if you find her location, okay?”

“Of course.” Allura nodded. She then watched as Matt left, the human a bit slower than usual as he put his arms around himself. She sighed, understanding the emotions he felt. She then looked to Kolivan, the Marmora leader looking visibly upset no matter how hard he tried to hide it. “Kolivan...”

“We keep losing her...” Kolivan spoke softly.

“And we’ll keep finding her.” Allura assured. “Like I told Matt, we won’t give up. Even if we can use a wormhole to reach Pidge, Drek, and Kullo, we’ll get to them and get them back.”

Kolivan nodded. “I’ll run scans through the ship, make sure there isn’t any sort of tracker stuck.” he said, leaving to do that and keep his mind focused.

Allura looked to the other paladins. They were all worried for the trio of friends, especially Pidge. Pidge had been through enough as it was and the three together were just kids, not even ready to be thrown into a situation on their own. There was no telling if where they wound up was dangerous or not.

Allura closed her eyes as she gave a silent prayer. _Please, let those three be safe wherever it is they are._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Making a call back to when we first see Drek and Kullo (when Pidge is communicating with them from Sendak's ship back in chapter four), the others are sure Drek can stomach anything. Turns out even he has his limits of what he can consume.


	32. Olkarion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The cadet trio crash on another planet and run into a whole new set of turmoils.

The green lion had crashed into a planet of sorts. Perfectly engineered and designed cities. High mountains that came even past the atmosphere. Dense forests that hid refugees as they worked hard to protect their planet and take it back. Such things await the trio outside the lion, but first they had an issue.

Pidge was in pain and not waking up.

“Drek, what do we do?” Kullo asked, holding Pidge on his lap. He had pulled her from the pilot’s seat and was trying to calm his friend down, but she could only whimper and occasionally fidget. “That attack… it had to have been designed to target Pidge especially. Do you think a druid was behind it? Or the high priestess?”

“Most likely.” Drek responded. He ran a hand through Pidge’s hair and down her face, tracing the two scars he left on her years ago. “We should get outside.”

“Hmm? But isn’t the lion supposed to protect her? Make her feel at more peace?”

“Yeah, but… Green’s down for the count and Pidge isn’t doing well… she can’t possibly do any worse outside, right?”

Kullo thought about it. “I guess you’re right.” He then got up with Drek’s help, making sure not to drop Pidge. She had always been smaller than either of them, but in her current condition, trying to curl in on herself, she seemed even tinier than usual.

It was a surprise to them to find that when they left the lion, Pidge started relaxing a bit. She still whimpered and was curled in on herself, but she seemed to be in less pain. Some feet from the lion, the two settled down with their friend.

“The lion’s not supposed to hurt Pidge… they definitely did something.” Kullo observed. He looked back at Green, seeing her barrier come up and protect her, keeping others out. “I don’t get what’s going on… but...” He looked back down at Pidge and pulled her closer. “I hope we can get back to the others. They’d know how to help her, right?”

“Hopefully.” Drek nodded. He then twitched an ear when he heard something rustling. He drew the sword he had and moved to shield Kullo and Pidge from whoever was approaching them. He didn’t budge when he saw a group of aliens, a race he didn’t recognize (not that he studied up on the different races much), armed with spears or some sort of blaster; some even seemed to be in mechanized suits of sorts.

“Drek…” Kullo whimpered, ears down in fear.

“Just keep a hold of Pidge.” Drek spoke softly. He watched these warriors closely, wary of them. Then one stepped forward and pulled down the hood of the white garment she wore around her shoulders. She looked older than the others; something about her told Drek she was in charge.

“Lower your weapons.” she spoke, but it wasn’t directed at the kit. She gave the order to her own people before approaching Drek. Drek, though, readied himself to protect his friends, his glare growing stern. “It’s okay, little one, we don’t mean any harm, especially to children.” the other spoke, her voice gentle and welcoming. “Voltron, hmm?” She looked up at the lion before over to Pidge.

Drek was silent, observing this woman a bit. He then looked back at Kullo, silently asking him something. When the other nodded, he turned back to the other. “Our friend, Pidge, is the paladin of the green lion. And… well, we don’t know fully what’s wrong with her...”

“Hmm.” The other scooted closer. She gently pulled Pidge from Kullo, supporting her with ease. She checked her over, even getting the paladin’s helmet off and running her fingers through the small girl’s hair. “Physically she’s well.” she stated. “Mentally, she fights a tough battle. For now, though, she is resting and recovering from it. She will wake before too long.” She nodded and looked to the two. “She’ll be fine for now. But her battle is not over.” She looked up at the green lion. “Far from it.”

The older alien stood up, Pidge still in her arms. “I am Ryner.” she introduced herself. “Come, we’ll get you to our home and taken care of. You can all rest with ease, Pidge especially.”

“But what about Green?” Kullo asked, motioning to the lion. “We can’t just leave her; someone bad may find her.”

“Indeed, someone may.” Ryner nodded. “We’ll get her moved so she can remain hidden.” She waited for the other two to stand up, ready to go with and help make sure Pidge was fine.

“I’m Kullo.” the purple Galra stated. “This is Drek.”

“Drek. Kullo.” Ryner nodded again. “Well, let’s go. And perhaps while Pidge rests, you can let me know what happened to lead to you three crashing on Olkarion, hmm?”

-+-+-+-

_Pidge looked around. She found herself in a place that was new_ _yet_ _familiar. It was green and starry. It seemed as vast and endless as space when flying through it. Observing her surroundings, she realized what the place was._

_“Green? Is this… is this your mind?” she asked. She remembered being much younger and the first time she successfully got to her lion and fell asleep on the floor next to her. She had a dream of being in a place like this; the serene gradients of green soothing her, like a lullaby. But it didn’t feel right this time._

_She felt something ominous, as though that place with Green was no longer safe. She slowly turned her head and looked back when she felt something appear. Rising from the ground was a dark, shadowy mass in a humanoid figure showed up. It held out its hand, forming a halberd-like weapon._

_Pidge stepped back and formed her bayard in her hand. “Who are you? Are you Green?” She yelped and actually dodged the attack when the other figure went at her. “Wait! Wait a tick, Green! Why are you fighting me? What’s wrong?” She then blocked the next attack with her weapon, trying to push back. “We don’t need to fight Gr-” She froze when she heard a roar. She looked back to see the green lion land within the space, watching the two. “Huh? Green?” She let out a surprised cry when she was knocked back. “Wait, if this is Green, then who are you?”_

_Pidge rolled to the side before the other’s weapon was brought down upon her. She got up and took the defensive. It wasn’t that she couldn’t fight, but she was in a bit of stupor, trying to comprehend what was going on. More than that, a voice, perhaps Green herself, was in the back of her mind, quietly telling her not to fight. “Look, I don’t want to fight!” she cried out. “I just want to know who you are!”_

_She blocked the next attack that nearly landed on her; she locked the other’s weapon against her own. “Please, we don’t have to fight; you can stop this right now!” Green let out another roar and the shadowy appearance faded away, but the figure remained. Pidge’s eyes widened when she saw this person as another, a different race from her own. But more than that, she saw the armor this other wore, for it was much like the paladin armor Pidge donned._

_“Who… who are you?” she asked. The other pulled away and raised her weapon, bringing it down on Pidge who didn’t have time to dodge or block._

It was then that Pidge opened her eyes and sat up, holding her hand to her chest and trying to catch her breath. She then looked around. She certainly wasn’t in the castle or in the green lion, but the dull green glow of the room put her at a little more ease than the purple typically used on Galran ships and bases. It was then that she felt the fabric between her hand and chest. Looking down, she found she was in different clothing. A white tunic of sorts with an orange long-sleeved shirt under it and gray and white pants. This definitely wasn’t a garment of the Galra.

“Did I… crash somewhere? Am I imprisoned?” Pidge slid out of bed. “Wait… Drek? Kullo?” She remembered them being in the lion with her. “Where are you?” She ran to a door that could hardly be called closed, a curtain covering it. She pulled it away slightly and looked out into a hall. Nothing. No one there. She checked back in her room, not finding her armor or bayard there. Okay, so she was unarmed, but if needed, she could still protect herself.

With a sigh, Pidge slipped out of the room and carefully went down the hall. She had no idea where she was. She then saw more light. Daylight? Carefully, she went toward it before stopping, feeling a breeze go past and ruffle her hair. “Outside...” she spoke softly. More than that, she looked in awe at the trees before her. This prompted her to turn and look. She had been inside a tree! The hall and room, perhaps even more, were formed inside the trees.

“Pidge? Pidge! You’re awake!”

“Ku?” Pidge turned to see Kullo and Drek up on another path. They were waving to her before following it to where she was. Kullo was quick to run over, pick her up, and spin. Just like her, her friends were wearing the strange clothing, though the orange shirts were shorter in the sleeves.

“You’re okay! We were so worried.” Kullo cheered.

“He was worried, I knew you’d be fine.” Drek assured, crossing his arms and smirking.

“He refused to leave your side until I dragged him.” Kullo chuckled, betraying his friend’s proclamation of being calm. “Ryner assured us that you’d be fine. We were just heading back after checking around things and making sure Green was fine; you woke up before we expected.”

“Where are we? And who’s Ryner?” Pidge inquired as Kullo set her down.

“We crashed on Olkarion. Ryner’s the leader of these refugees, the Olkari.” Drek explained. “You up to walking?”

“Yeah.” Pidge nodded. She then followed Drek as he led them elsewhere. “How long was I out?”

“A few vargas. Not that it’s easy to tell here without technology; apparently there’s no day/night cycle on Olkarion.” Drek stated.

“You see, due to Olkarion’s position orbiting a gas planet and the nearby sun giving light and reflecting off of the gas planet, the two become light sources and that with the mountains, the planet is kept in perpetual twilight.” Kullo explained. “There are moments when it’s a bit lighter or darker, but other than that, it’s all the same.”

“Wow.” Pidge smiled, finding that fascinating. She was led down to the ground where a mass of roots had come up, encasing a glowing green object in the middle. To her, it was beautiful. And then came foreign giggling and suddenly being surrounded by some children. “Huh?” She blinked and watched the children crowd her, the gaggle asking several questions.

“Children, go on and play, let our guests be and adjust.” Ryner told the kids, scooting them away, even at the sounds of disappointment they made. “Go, go. Shoo.” She chuckled when she finally got them to go off. “Don’t mind the children; they were just excited to meet a paladin of Voltron.”

“Oh. I was a little confused.” Pidge chuckled a bit. “Um...”

“I’m Ryner. Drek and Kullo already explained to me what they knew about you and the green lion crashing here.” Ryner spoke. “How do you feel?”

“I’m… I’m not sure.” Pidge admitted. How did she feel? Something didn’t feel right, but that could have also been her dream with the other person fighting her. “How’s Green?”

“She’s not letting anyone into the barrier.” Kullo spoke up.

“Of course, it could be because she knew you weren’t around and needed rest.” Ryner assured. “Shall we go see her after we get some food in you?”

“Oh, no need to food, we can ju-” Pidge froze when he stomach betrayed her and audibly rumbled at her. “Traitor.”

Ryner snickered a bit. “I think your stomach knows what you need.” she assured. “Let’s get you fed, then we’ll go check on Green.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Of course, I never leave out Olkarion. I love that planet and the episodes with it in canon. And since Ryner, in canon, points out them all being the same and from the same cosmic dust, she would of course not worry when she sees two Galran kits, especially ones in trouble and just wanting to protect their friend.   
> Well! I hope you guys enjoyed! Until next time!


	33. Left to One's Thoughts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge gets to see the forested city on Olkarion and learn about their tech and even how the Olkari ended up out there. Learning that they adapt and survive, she feels a certain closeness to the technological geniuses. But worrisome thoughts find a way to intrude her mind.

Pidge went face first into the barrier that erected around Green, smacking right into it as it kept her from fully approaching the lion. “What the quiznak?!” she called, stumbling back and holding a hand to her nose. She fell back in shock, sitting on the ground. “Green… Green’s not letting me in.”

“Pidge, what about...” Kullo spoke, worry set on his face as his ears went down.

Pidge nodded and rolled up her sleeve, checking her left shoulder. Her mark was still there, as clear as ever. “Still there...”

“Then why is Green rejecting you? Was it that attack?” Drek asked.

“That has to be the case… right?” Pidge looked worried as she pushed her sleeve back down. “Green...”

“Perhaps she’s also protecting you.” Ryner suggested. “You’ve been through so much already...”

“Maybe… that could be right, too...” Pidge looked downcast at this point. She could hardly recall a time when she was rejected by the lion. In the past, there had been a few moments of finding her but the barrier remaining, but she was just a little kid and shouldn’t have gone off through the universe, right?

“Rest. Perhaps tomorrow will be different.” Ryner assured as she gently rested her hand on top of the paladin’s head.

“Yeah...” Pidge nodded. She still couldn’t help but wonder just why Green would do this. She was still a paladin, the mark on her arm was proof enough, but she felt there was something deeper. She couldn’t help but think it could have to do with that other figure she saw before. She didn’t know who they were or why they were there, but she definitely felt that their armor was very similar to her own.

Taking Ryner’s advice, Pidge was taking it easy until she felt ready to sleep again. She wandered around forest city the Olkari had designed, taking in the sights and admiring their work. “So how did you guys come to live out here?” she inquired.

“Our city was taken from us when the Garla attacked.” Ryner explained. “We were ready to fight, to protect our people and our king, Lubos.” She sighed. “But we were no match; most were caught and enslaved and our king… we thought he was taken prisoner, used as a means to make the people be as compliant as ever.”

“He wasn’t?” Pidge guessed.

“We found out from another who could get information to us… Lubos had betrayed us… he willingly gave his ideas to the Galra and continued to let his people be enslaved…” Ryner sighed, downcast from that. “By the time we found out, it was too late. We neither had the power or the numbers to take down the Galra and they had taken too much. So, we found ourselves surviving out here instead, evolving and adapting, changing from engineering with metals to working with plants.”

Pidge stopped to see some younger Olkari, maybe around her age or a bit older, working with plants, forming them into bug-like forms and flying off. Though plants, they were like robots or drones, electronic in their own unique ways. “Whoa.” Seeing the tech from the Olkari, Pidge was in awe. Sure, even Kullo and Drek were amazed, but neither were surprised when Pidge went in close, checking out what the others were doing.

“Pidge really likes technology.” Kullo informed Ryner. “Forget her resting, she’ll be busy running amok, asking questions, checking everything out.”

“Well, if any of you are curious, I’m more than happy to show you around more. There’s a lot to see with our tech.” Ryner offered, the words quickly getting Pidge’s attention. The Olkari leader led the three to another section of the forest, one that she referred to as the armory. There, the youths saw how the Olkari formed their weapons.

“So can just anyone interface with it?” Pidge inquired, checking out the tech. “Growing up on… on a Galra ship and seeing bases, I’ve been so used to technology only being species oriented when it comes to interfacing.”

“Not that it kept Pidge out; she’s always adapted and found ways, even past tight securities.” Drek added, making his friend chuckle a bit. Even Ryner was amused by that; she was also intrigued by that bit of information.

“Actually, while our method is not a way other species can naturally do, we do actually have a way for others to work with our tech.” Ryner commented. She went to a plant and waved her hand over it, getting it to open up and show headpieces in it. She picked one up and put it on her head before motioning to the others, silently telling each kit to do the same. “Now, when working with these, you must understand that the nanocellulose responds to the electrical impulses from the neural pathways connected through these.”

“Um… what?” Drek asked. “Can you translate in a language that we understand?”

“I’m used to Pidge’s tech talk and even I don’t understand.” Kullo admitted.

Pidge sighed. “Well, it’s like those programming courses they had us take during camp. You write out your commands as binary codes, since they’re easier to translate across the board and use in the different bases, and the actions come on screen or affect the technology. Except instead of physically typing this out, you’re just writing them out in your brains. And since this is technology still and the universe is arranged by the laws of mathematics, creating your mental commands in binary code would be most optimal way to go about it, right?”

“That wasn’t much simpler...” Drek deadpanned.

“Bravo, a wonderful way of explaining this.” Ryner praised. “And you’re right, the commands do still need to be sent in binary code.”

“You know, of all the languages I’ve learned… I never understood binary...” Kullo sighed. “Pidge not only thinks in binary, but she also creates a series of additions and subtractions to create new messages hidden within the original, thus giving the wrong message first, but to those who know it, they can get to the new message. We never got the hang of it.”

Ryner chuckled a bit. “Well, why don’t you all at least try this one.” she stated. “Like this, approach a tree and send it your command; a mech suit should drop.” She demonstrated, picking a tree and working with it. It didn’t take long for a large ball to crash and open up, revealing to be a mech suit. “See?”

“That’s so cool!” Kullo grinned brightly. He then looked back at Drek to see him trying.

“Did I pick a dud or something?” Drek asked, nothing happening. Kullo decided to try at another tree, but he had the same results as the other Galran. Then came Pidge.

Pidge went to a tree and gave her mental command. As quickly as Ryner’s did, a mech suit fell and opened up.

“Excellent work, Pidge; you must have a deep connection with nature.” Ryner pointed out.

“Do I?” Pidge asked. She looked back at the tree and smiled, thinking of when she was on Arus. She did love that planet, being outside and surrounded by nature, seeing more than just metal. “Maybe I do...”

“Why does this not surprise me that Pidge can adapt to their tech?” Drek asked, though he didn’t have any hard feelings. If anything, he seemed amused by his friend. “Even with our short times knowing each other these past few deca-phoebs and now living with her, it’s easy to see how she is with tech. She hardly even needs a manual and she gets right to it.”

“In short,” Kullo hummed, “Pidge is a technological genius.”

Ryner chuckled. “Though we’re different, you do hold the spirit of the Olkari.” she told the Earthling. “You adapt to your surroundings, able to work with what you’ve got to improve. You understand that deep inside, we’re all the same, originating from the same cosmic dust that created the universe, us, metal and trees, everything, and we’re all arranged by the laws of mathematics.”

“Did that make sense?” Drek whispered.

“A little.” Kullo responded.

“Anyway,” Ryner continued, “there’s actually something I wish to show you. And for that, well, you’ll want to give your friends a ride.”

Ryner led the group out to the edge of the forest. As they got to the top of a ridge, she showed them the city the Olkari once called home. “It is sad we lost our city but we did stay strong and kept going.”

Pidge watched the city. She didn’t need her visor or any sort of binoculars to zoom in on the area to know that those still in the city were slaves, forced to work and utilize their abilities for the sake of the greedy Galran conquerors. She felt horrible as she thought about what the Olkari had to endure. Watching alongside her, Pidge was far from alone in those thoughts.

“I know we haven’t done anything directly,” Kullo stated, meaning himself and his two friends, “but I still feel guilty about all of this...”

“Had we not chosen to be with Pidge, this would have one day been something we’d do.” Drek commented. “Or rather me…You’re too kind for this sort of thing, Ku.”

Pidge nodded in agreement. “You’d have found a way out of it, staying away from this horrible life, but Drek and me...” She shook her head. “It’s still our future but not in the way we originally thought… how we were originally taught; instead of conquering, we’re fighting to protect others.”

“I like the sounds of that.” Drek nodded.

“I may not really like fighting, but I can at least support you two.” Kullo assured.

Ryner smiled softly. These three were just children and should not have been thrown in this war as they had been. But they were determined to make a difference. Though raised by Galrans and expected to be soldiers for the empire, they were able to turn around and see how wrong it was and decide for themselves what to do. Seeing this, it filled Ryner with hope.

“Well, it’s getting late, so why don’t we return, hmm?” the older Olkari suggested.

The others returned to the forest city where Pidge first checked out more things before finding a path that was out of the way to sit on, her friends relaxing with her. When relaxing, Pidge was thinking about Green again, but more thoughts came to her.

_I know I’m the green paladin,_ she thought, _but what if this is Green telling me I shouldn’t be? Green could be protecting me. Maybe this last bout with Haggar was enough to make Green say I need to be safe but…_ She thought of the other person she fought. Who were they? How did they get there? _They wore what looked like paladin armor; could they have been a paladin, too? Could they have been Trigel?_ She thought of the name, remembering being told a few times of her predecessor, but she was never told much, only that she was clever and the previous green paladin. If that had been Trigel while in Green’s consciousness, Pidge didn’t know why she would be attacking her.

_Would Trigel think I’m not worthy of being the green paladin?_ She was left with that sad thought as she leaned against Kullo, getting his attention.

“Hmm? What’s wrong?” Kullo inquired, looking down at Pidge. He and Drek had a way of knowing when something was wrong with their friend. When Pidge didn’t respond, he continued. “Is it about Green? She’ll let you in before you know it.” Pidge just grunted and closed her eyes.

“Maybe we should get some rest.” Drek asked. “It’s been a long day.”

“You’re taking advantage of the fact that we don’t have to wake up for role call like we did at camp, aren’t you?” Pidge smirked when Drek chuckled at that; she certainly wasn’t wrong with that comment.


	34. Afraid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While the others still search for their missing members of the team, Pidge finds herself enjoying her time on Olkarion. Drek and Kullo, though, grow worried about their friend and Green.

Pidge stared up at green, seeing the barrier around the lion. She was hesitant to even approach Green. _I know we need Voltron, but… being here, not using Green… it’s almost…_ She sighed and shook her head before leaving Green where she was and returning to the others.

-+-+-+-

“The bad news is that we won’t be able to use the teludav much more, even with Hunk’s failed attempt at cookies.” Coran declared.

“Okay, while they weren’t good cookies, at least they were useful for something.” Hunk reminded. The cookies that he attempted to make had traces of scaultrite in them, making them somewhat effective for a small wormhole jump when Zarkon continued to chase after them. “But you said bad news… does that mean there’s good news?”

“Indeed!” Coran perked up. “We may have located a swap moon; if I can find an old Unilu swap shop, I may be able to find scaultrite lens-stones. You see, in the past, so few Alteans could use a teludav; finding such items would be damn near improbable to find… but not impossible.” He looked hopeful that they would find what they needed. “Otherwise, we’d need a Weblum and… well, that’s not a fun trip.”

“Any word on Pidge?” Matt spoke up. “And Drek and Kullo?”

“And that’s where more bad news comes in...” Allura was the one to respond. “I’ve been trying to track the others through the green lion but nothing has come up… I haven’t been able to locate them...” The others were down when it came to that information.

“Well, with Zarkon trying to get us, we can feel a bit better, right?” Lance asked. “It means he’s not after Pidge.”

“You’re right on that part, but Sendak’s still out there; he could be after Pidge, too.” Allura reminded.

Sendak. Still alive and out there. Haxus thought about him and how he probably wouldn’t stop until he grabbed hold of Pidge and dragged her back to the empire. As much as Sendak actually cared for Pidge, even Haxus knew that, he was a loyal soldier who always followed orders.

“Haxus? Are you okay?” Krolia asked, sitting near her fellow Blade. He and Pidge may not have been blood, but they were still a parent and child, just as she was with Keith; she even saw the others as her children, furthering her belief that blood did not always make a family. “I know you’re worried about Pidge...”

“She may be strong,” Haxus responded, “but she’s still a kit and this universe is cruel. If Sendak was sent to look for her after we got separated, I worry how she’ll react to him. Talking to him when he was detained is different from coming face to face with him.”

“Do you think he’ll hurt her?” Krolia inquired.

“Physically, of course not. He rarely admitted such a thing, but he did care for Pidge as though she was his daughter.” Haxus informed. “But mentally… maybe not intentionally…”

“We’ll find her, Haxus.” Krolia put her hand over his arm, gently giving a squeeze to comfort him. “We won’t let the empire hurt her again.”

“I hope so.” Haxus nodded. “Same for the others. Drek and Kullo are still kits, yes, but if they’re caught since they abandoned the empire...”

“We’ll find them all.” Krolia assured. “We’ll get them back.”

-+-+-+-

“And you haven’t gone in search of the green lion or its paladin?” Sendak had found his way to Olkarion and stood face to face with Commander Branko, a disgraced Galran who maintained that planet and controlled most of it.

“The Olkari rebels who we haven’t caught took them in and hid within the forests; those forests are dangerous to go into.” Branko admitted. “Going in is risky; we lost several sentries with ease out there.”

“Hmm.” Sendak grunted, resisting the urge to call the other commander a coward for holding back. However, even he knew that Branko was already on a bad list with Zarkon for having a horrible reputation of wasting resources. He checked the security footage of the past movement, hoping to find something useful. Then he stopped when he saw from the quintant prior, seeing two mech suits at the edge and overlooking the city. Zooming in, he pinpointed Pidge in one of the mechs, two Galra youths, Kullo and Drek he easily recognized, with her.

“Kits?” Branko observed. “Why would...” He scowled. “So, not only did the green paladin stray, but she dragged others with her...”

“Those two are of no importance; one is a weakling and the other has traitorous blood in his veins. Our focus should only be on the paladin.” Sendak informed. “In order to get her to come out and captured, we need to lure her out by her biggest weakness.”

“And you just so happen to know what it is?”

“I raised her, I know her better than she knows herself.” Sendak smirked, a plan already formulating in his mind. “Give me a few quintants; we’ll get results.”

-+-+-+-

“She didn’t even try today, did she?” Drek asked, observing Pidge from a distance. While on Olkarion, Pidge took to learning about the technology the Olkari came to work with, amazed by it thoroughly. They had been on Olkarion for a few quintants. At first Pidge talked about the green lion and not being able to get in, but now she seemed to not even bother, just going straight to Ryner and the others, ready to learn. “I know she likes to learn and all that fun stuff, but… shouldn’t she also be working with Green? We need to get back to the others...” He then sighed. “But she’s happy. Like truly happy… I can’t bring myself to ruin that...”

Kullo sighed. Normally he wasn’t the type to get into confrontations, but he knew they had a job to do. When Pidge was finished with a lesson, he went up to her. “You ignored Green today.” he told her.

“She hasn’t been responding all this time and I haven’t felt her; why bother today?” Pidge inquired in a dismissive tone. She moved to walk past but stopped when Kullo actually grabbed her arm. “Ku?”

“This isn’t what I like doing, but it needs to be said.” Kullo mumbled. “Pidge, you need to go to Green; you need to try and get her to open up again.”

“She’s not been opening up; maybe she needs time. Or maybe there’s something worse with her; Coran and Allura would know when they find us.”

“Or maybe you’re afraid.” Kullo’s words were a shock to both Pidge and Drek. Neither of them actually expected him to say that, let alone in a firm tone.

“What?” Pidge pulled her arm away. “I am not afraid.”

“I think you are.” Kullo took on the calm tone again. “And that’s okay; it’s okay to be afraid, especially now since you’ve got people who care about you and want to help. You’re not alone, so it’s okay.”

“I told you, I’m not afraid!” Pidge raised her voice, making Kullo jump and his ears drop. “Sorry, I’m just… ugh… I’m tired. Okay? I’m going to-” She tried to walk off, but Kullo moved in her way.

“Haggar. The druids. Seeing others hurt in the arenas. Hurting your friends.” Kullo stated. “You’re afraid of all of these things. And there’s something with the green lion that scares you. But you can’t rise up unless you start to acknowledge these things.” He sighed. “I was afraid of those simulations we ran in camp. I knew I was the weak link and would be left behind so the mission would succeed. Though I accepted it, I was afraid… but you turned around and saw my strengths, keeping me with the group. You didn’t turn your back on me… and I’m not turning mine on you.”

Pidge hung her head a bit before leaning in, resting it against Kullo’s chest. She didn’t move when he put his arms around her, hugging her close.

“Something scares you… and we want to help.” Kullo spoke softly. He smiled when Drek joined them, putting his hand on Pidge’s shoulder.

“If you talk with us, we can help you.” Drek told her. “We’re a team and we got each others’ backs.”

“After we went through the wormhole, I found myself in I think Green’s consciousness.” Pidge explained. “And… someone else was there… fighting me… I think that was the previous paladin… my predecessor.” She let out a sigh. “I think she feels I’m not worthy of being a paladin… maybe I’m not. Sometimes I want to leave this behind; if I wasn’t a paladin, then Haggar never would have gotten a hold of me...”

“But if you weren’t a paladin, we’d have not met you.” Kullo reminded. He then looked to Drek, seeing his face change a bit, as though he was in thought. “Coming up with something heartfelt to say?”

“If what you saw was your predecessor, why see them now after Haggar attacked the lion?” Drek asked. “If you ask me, I think Haggar’s attack did something to trigger that.” He noticed his friends staring at him. “What?”

“Ku, the universe is ending, Drek made a very valid point that actually sounded smart.” Pidge commented.

“Aw, Drek! You made a great observation and pointed it out!” Kullo cooed.

“I should feel like you guys are complimenting me, but I feel more insulted…” Drek scowled.

“The joy of us being your friends.” Pidge grinned. She then sighed as that smile fell. “But you do make a good point about Haggar being tied in to this. And with that point made, it now makes sense as to why Green isn’t letting me in. She’s protecting me from Haggar corrupting her… and maybe the witch’s attempt to corrupt me.”

“But if Green is keeping you out to protect you, how do we get this fixed?” Kullo asked. He looked when Ryner approached, the Olkari leader having been listening to the group.

“You may not need to be inside Green; as a paladin, you should be able to connect to her from anywhere, even just sitting near her.” Ryner commented. “You have a bond with your lion, but to successfully get her back and even heal her from this, you’ll need to strengthen that bond with her.” She nodded and offered an assuring smile. “You can do this, I know you can. And you’ve got your friends to help you, too.”

Pidge looked to Drek and then Kullo before turning her attention back to Ryner. “Okay.” she said. “I think I’m ready to do this. I’ve run away long enough, it’s time to set things right.”

Pidge returned to where the green lion was, her companion still not opening up. That was fine, she trusted Ryner and was certain she could connect from the outside. She then sat down and concentrated, feeling Drek and Kullo sit on either side of her, staying close. She mentally called out to her lion, hoping to be let into Green’s consciousness again.

When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in that green and starry area, the lion sitting to the side and watching over her. She looked past to see the figure show up again, the green armor seen once more. “I’d rather not fight you, Trigel,” she commented, “but if it means protecting Green and myself, especially from Haggar, then that’s what I’m gonna do. Hell, you’re probably just an apparition sent to mess me up by Haggar. Well, I’m not going down that easily. I may have been running away for the past few quintants, but I’ve also learned in that time, too.”


	35. Internal Conflict

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge rises up to deal with her own internal battle and protect Green. On the outside, though, another conflict shows itself.

“I may have been running away for the past few quintants,” Pidge told the other as she formed her bayard into its weapon form, “but I’ve also learned in that time, too.” She readied herself for the altercation. “Now then, let’s get this done and over with; it’s about damn time this ends and I get this corruption out of Green.”

The other, who Pidge felt was just a dark apparition of Trigel, charged at her, her weapon ready to strike. Pidge dodged with ease, utilizing her smaller form in the fight. Pidge kept on dodging, waiting for an opportune time to hit back. In her time of training, she had to learn how to fight bigger foes since, in most cases, any fighting would be against those larger than her; some who knew her probably never thought she would use that training against them.

Pidge continued to move around. A few times she got knocked back, but she handled herself well. Then she saw an opening. She ran at Trigel and slid under her. When past, she rolled over and jabbed her weapon into the back of Trigel’s leg, shocking her. Before the other could retaliate, Pidge got back up and jumped away.

“Okay, this isn’t fully working; I need to think of a different plan of action.” Pidge grumbled. “This dancing around isn’t doing me good...” She nodded and got ready again, this time going on the offensive. Of course, this Trigel was skilled. She was like a veteran warrior; Pidge had to give Haggar points for managing that.

Then they clashed fully, their weapons locking against each other. Pidge jerked and jumped back at a small vision of sorts, seeing who she thought was Trigel before the armor. “What was… what was that?” She staggered back. “Hmm… that’s… I’m certain Haggar’s got something to do with you, but I think there’s something more to it than I originally thought.”

Pidge nodded. She recalled what Ryner said about being the same, made from the same cosmic dust and everything arranged by mathematics. She wondered if she could connect to this Trigel, find out more, maybe even stop the corruption. Sure, this wasn’t a piece of technology and they were in the green lion’s consciousness, but she hoped she could still tap into something, put an end to the fight and get Green back to normal. With that, she ran at Trigel again, the two clashing once more. Like last time, Pidge saw something, but different from before, she got to experience more.

_“You think you’ll have the lions again? Like hell we’d allow that!” a blue, aquatic looking alien snapped from beside Trigel, both of which looked battered and beaten. Seeing this, Pidge felt she should have seen it through Trigel’s eyes, but she saw the situation from the perspective of someone else._

_“I will ask again; where did Alfor hide the lions?” Pidge didn’t see him, but she recognized Zarkon’s voice. The voice was from beside her. Was she perhaps seeing through Haggar?_

_“Zarkon, come to your senses! This isn’t right!” Trigel was the one to speak up._

_“I will take that as a no then. So be it.” Zarkon stated._

_Pidge noticed movement; Haggar stepped forward. Then came shadowy creatures that swarmed Trigel, the man she was supporting, and another behind them._

Pidge felt herself and Trigel part from each other, but it wasn’t her who stumbled backward. She looked to see that Trigel stepped away and fell to her knees. She ripped off her helmet and threw it to the side before holding onto her head. Seeing this, Pidge ran over to her and hugged her.

“It’s okay, it’s okay, Trigel… Haggar’s done enough and hurt you. But… but we can stop that… we don’t have to be afraid of her.” Pidge whispered.

Trigel’s breath was laboured, but after a moment, she relaxed. She pulled away enough to look at Pidge. “You… you’re… you’re the one who succeeded me as the green paladin.” She was stunned at first, but soon she settled down. She reached her hand up and touched Pidge’s cheek, gently tracing her thumb down the part of the scar that was beneath her eye. “Haggar… she had been cruel...”

“I survived.” Pidge assured. “But you...”

“I know I’m already dead… I died long ago.” Trigel commented. “Somehow Haggar must have trapped my soul…”

“And when she attacked Green, she had you corrupted and sent here…” Pidge continued. “Probably to corrupt me.”

“Probably.” Trigel nodded. “Thank you, Pidge; thank you for helping me.” Pidge smiled brightly at that. “Now, it’s time for you to help Green.”

“I think I can do that now.” Pidge commented, looking to the visual she had of the lion. “I was able to help you, I know I can help Green.”

-+-+-+-

“She’s been like this for a while.” Kullo observed, holding Pidge’s hand. “Ryner, do you think she’s okay?”

“I’m sure she’s fine.” Ryner assured. “After all, you two are with her. You may not be in her mind and fighting this battle alongside her, but you’re with her here and helping her in your own ways. You are her support.”

Drek and Kullo smiled softly as they continued to sit with Pidge, waiting for her to come out of whatever this was that she was handling. Paladin work was strange, unique, and even scary. Seeing her like this, they felt helpless to help their friend, but Ryner made them feel better. Even if they couldn’t fight at her side, they could wait for her.

And then Green’s barrier dissipated. After that, Pidge took in a deep breath and opened her eyes.

“Pidge? Are you okay?” Drek asked, scooting to sit in front of her.

Pidge smiled. “I think I’m actually better than okay.” she said. “And my bond with Green is much stronger than before.”

Kullo quickly hugged Pidge. “Oh! That’s so good to hear! I’m proud of you, Pidge!”

“Thanks for sticking with me, guys.” Pidge snuggled into Kullo’s hug. “And I think I’m done with Haggar trying to control me. I refuse to let her hurt me.”

“That’s good to hear.” Drek confirmed. “So what happened in there?”

Pidge opened her mouth to respond, but a commotion caught her attention. “I’ll try to remember to explain it another time. Something is up.”

“Indeed.” Ryner got the children up and went with them back to the settlement. There, a couple of Olkari were checking on an Olkari man dressed as a prisoner, the man down on his knees and catching his breath. Others were watching, worried but making sure to not get in the way. “What’s going on?” Ryner inquired, kneeling before the Olkari man. “How did...”

“Branko, who took over our city… he let me go… but my wife… my child… he has them hostage...” the Olkari man spoke, his voice showing his distress and exhaustion. “But he’s willing to make a deal… even to be merciful on the others...”

“What sort of deal?” Ryner inquired.

“He wants the green lion and its paladin turned over… to a commander named Sendak.”

Pidge went rigid; Drek’s hand on her shoulder and Kullo taking her other hand made her relax. Of course Sendak would find his way there and be after her. That would explain why she was able to keep from Haggar for the duration of their stay on Olkarion.

“Branko… I think I recall that commander’s name.” Kullo spoke up. “Brash. Arrogant but unable to successfully back that, practically exiled but still maintains his status as commander. Not always the sharpest blade in the armory, but what he lacks in intellect, he makes up in his manipulative ability and striking deals.”

“Which would explain working with Lubos in keeping the others prisoner… but this Sendak fellow...” Ryner looked uneasy.

“Sendak. Stubborn. Hard headed. But he’s clever and able to come up with plans. He’s also strong and refuses to give up without a fight.” Pidge spoke up. “And… he helped to raise me.” She sighed as she let that sink in. “He knows me well enough, even to know that sending someone with a wife and child wouldn’t get you guys to turn me over… but rather get me to turn myself in to him.”

“You can’t possibly be thinking of doing that, can you?” Drek asked, ready to argue and keep his friend safe.

“No, no… I can’t give up that easily.” Pidge shook her head. She then started pacing, the two Galra keeping back. “Okay, okay, we know what Sendak wants… and honestly, we can’t trust him or Branko to hold up their end of the bargain of returning someone’s family or being merciful. That’s not how most Galra are.”

“We’ll work on a plan.” Ryner commented, getting the others to give them space and time to think as she went to Pidge. She got the young paladin to settle down. “We’ll come up with something… and we’ll keep you safe.”

“Me being here could make things worse… but if I flee, it could still make things worse.” Pidge mumbled. “We need to take back the city… get rid of those conquering… but doing that… I mean, we’ve got the green lion… and...”

“I wish there was a way to trick them… make them think you were turning yourself in.” Drek commented. “Then we can just use Green’s cloaking to get in and start attacking… That ought to create a diversion for the Olkari to help and get their people out and even rise up and help fight.” He stopped when he realized the others were watching him. “What?”

“Drek, you came up with another good idea and it’s scary.” Pidge commented. “Who are you and what have you done with the Drek we know?”

“Hey! I have good ideas now and then!” Drek yelped. “But… I had a good idea? I was just saying some things that I hoped were possible.”

“Which helps in giving more ideas. Because yes, we do have Green’s ability to cloak. Plus, I think she and I have a new skill to try out.” Pidge stated. “But to trick him first… Ryner, do you guys have a method to project images? Like a hologram?”

“A hologram? Yes, that would be an easy thing to work on. But cloaking a device to use that so it isn’t noticed...”

“I think I can help there.” Pidge nodded. “We need to work quickly, but I think we have a plan.”

“Then let’s get to work.” Ryner confirmed.


	36. Clever Girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As those back at the castle continue searching for Pidge, Drek, and Kullo, the trio work alongside the Olkari, aiming to protect Olkarion and liberate it from Galran control.

Haxus was pacing. They had managed to find the scaultrite lens-stones they needed and Coran put them in; the teludav was once again functional. But they still hadn’t found the three youngest of the team. They were still unaccounted for and Allura had yet to locate them by tracking the green lion.

“It’s been too long… we’ve heard nothing and Zarkon hasn’t been trailing us...” Haxus muttered. “What if they were already captured? Zarkon may already have the green lion, Pidge might have been taken back to Haggar and the druids, and there’s no telling what could happen to Drek and Kullo; they would be seen as traitors and without the same guarantee of being a paladin that Pidge has...”

“Haxus, I know you’re worried, but we’re doing all we can to locate them.” Allura promised. “You need to be patient.”

“Patient?” Haxus nearly snapped at the princess. “My little girl is out there, somewhere, and possibly being tortured. We don’t know where she is and without knowing, we can’t help her! How can I possi-” He stopped and looked away when Matt put a hand on his shoulder. He didn’t realize he raised his voice; how Allura managed to stand there and take it, not even looking startled, it was beyond him.

“This is Pidge we’re talking about; she’s strong on a physical level and with Drek and Kullo with her, she’d be stronger mentally.” Matt assured. Haxus watched him closely; Matt may have held it in better, but the Blade could tell that he was immensely worried about the kids, one his actual sister and two he treated as his little brothers. “We’ll find her. And I bet you anything she wouldn’t even need our rescue efforts.”

“I hope that’s the case… she’s been through so much… I don’t want the empire to hurt any one of them...” Haxus sighed.

“We’ll do what we can to make sure of that, but we also need to trust that they can take care of themselves, too.” Matt reminded. He then looked over when the computer system beeped insistently at them. “Huh? What’s wrong?”

“It’s not the alarms, so we’re not under attack, are we?” Lance inquired, picking up the tone as different from the alarms.

“No, it’s the green lion! It’s finally letting us know where it’s at!” Allura declared, excitement in her voice. “I’m tracking the location now.” True to her word, she was. She checked the maps before getting excited. “I found it! It’s on Olkarion!”

“Olkarion, according to our records,” Kolivan spoke up, “that’s another planet under Galra rule.”

“Then we need to hurry; they may need our help.” Allura stated. “Paladins! To your lions! Be prepared to launch!” She then started working on the wormhole, glad to see it form and open up. “Okay, here we go!”

-+-+-+-

Before Allura got the signal and knew where to find the missing members of the team, the others were preparing, getting their plan together. Pidge sat with some Olkari after setting up some small cube-shaped devices to cloak them.

“Okay, these will project my image to Sendak and this one, which will be in the middle of the projection, is set up to simulate my voice.” Pidge reminded. “You need to make Sendak think that that’s me while I sneak around with Green. Be stubborn. He’ll command that I disarm myself, remind him that I know better than that.”

“I think I can manage this.” an Olkari woman nodded.

“Are we ready?” Ryner asked, looking ready for battle.

“Yeah.” Pidge nodded. She got up. “Drek?” She saw her friend ready to fight alongside the Olkari.

“I may be young, but I know how to fight. The least I can do is aid the Olkari in this battle by fighting alongside them.” Drek informed. “I’ll be fine.”

“Be careful.” Pidge put her arms around her friend, hugging him. “Stay strong.”

“It’ll always be victory for me.” Drek reminded. He then looked to Kullo, putting his hand on his shoulder when he was done hugging Pidge. “Keep an eye on her, okay?”

“I will.” Kullo nodded. “Be as safe as you can.”

Drek nodded. He then parted from his friends, going with the Olkari who were prepared to take back the city. Pidge and Kullo went to the green lion, preparing to take flight. Then there was the team with the technology set up for the holographic Pidge to hopefully trick Sendak. With the plan ready, everyone got into position.

“Okay, we can do this… we can do this...” The Olkari set up the cubes and got them running. They projected Pidge’s image around them; the team sent them out into the city.

Sendak spotted Pidge, unaware that this wasn’t actually her. He smirked when he saw her and stepped into view. “Looks like you still value others over yourself.” he commented. “Where is the green lion?”

“Hidden!” the Olkari said, Pidge’s voice being projected from the hologram. “And you won’t get it until demands are met! You’ll leave Olkarion and leave the Olkari alone, that includes releasing those you have as prisoner, including the other’s family taken hostage.”

“Making such big demands for a kit in your position.” Sendak responded. “How about we talk more professionally, hmm? Toss aside your weapon and we can talk.”

“I know better than that, Sendak.” was the response. As Pidge expected, he tried to make that command. “Look! I gave my demands! I’m not standing down from them!”

Pidge was in her green lion, waiting for the signal that the others were in position. Once it was given, she set out, leaving the forest with the green lion cloaked. She got to the main tower where the Galra had been primarily stationed. “Okay Green, let’s see what you’ve got.” She nodded and readied the green lion with the new weapon she could form. Though invisible to others, a cannon appeared on Green’s back, taking the place of the shield. “Okay, we’re behind enemies lines, let’s do this!” She fired the cannon several times at the tower the Galra used as their base. Fitting of the title of _Guardian of Nature_ that the lion held, vines burst from the tower, encasing it.

Sendak realized something was wrong. Brondak contacted him over his comm and told him that an unseen force attacked the base. Turning, he saw the green lion appear, the cloaking wearing off. “What? You!” He turned back to the Pidge he saw. The hologram dissipated and revealed the cubes that flew off. Though angry, he was also impressed. “Heh, leave it to Pidge to come up with a diversion and even be able to trick me. Clever.”

“Okay, I think we have Sendak’s attention.” Pidge assured from the lion. “How’s the ground team?”

**“Taking down the sentries and reclaiming the city, but they’re determined!”** Drek reported.

**“Pidge, be on alert! It looks like they’re mobilizing fighters!”** Ryner informed.

“Ah quiznak...” Pidge grumbled. “We’re gonna need more help than just me...”

**“Anyone call for help?”** came a familiar voice.

“Lance?!” Kullo asked. He then saw the other four lions fly in, entering Olkarion’s atmosphere. “Hey! They found us!”

“Great timing, team!” Pidge exclaimed.

**“Are you all okay?”** Lance questioned, worry in his voice.

“Drek’s fighting alongside the Olkari on the ground; Kullo’s with me. So far, we’re all good.” Pidge commented. “We need to stop the battleship and fighters, though! Otherwise, the ground team will be sitting duflaxes down there!”

**“Sitting… what?”** Hunk inquired.

**“We’ll question what that is later; for now we need to form Voltron!”** Shiro announced.

The team did, coming together as Voltron. Pidge grinned, enjoying that feeling of being with them again. Lingering behind her, Kullo was getting giddy, amazed with actually witnessing Voltron forming, especially from the inside.

Working together, they were able to take down the ships. Below and on the surface, the Olkari were reclaiming their cities. The Galra that survived the battle fled, even Sendak. But it wasn’t to run away, but rather plan for his next attempt.

**“Guys, our comm** **s are** **being overridden.”** Keith informed. In each lion, while they were still together as Voltron, Sendak’s image appeared in communications. **“Sendak!”**

**“Clever work in distracting me, Pidge.”** Sendak complimented. **“But know that that trick won’t work again in the future. For now, though, I’ll allow you to claim your victory. We will cross paths again.”** The communication cut out.

“Pidge...” Kullo whispered.

“It’s fine.” Pidge nodded. “I’m not afraid of him… I’ll be waiting and ready for next time.” At first Kullo worried that Pidge was actually terrified, but seeing the determined flare in her eyes and the smirk on her lips, he found that she was fine. She was feeling much better about what she was going through.

When they split off and landed in the city, the castle included, Pidge was glad to find that Drek was okay. He had a few bruises, injuries during battle did happen, but he survived. She hugged him until she noticed Matt watching. Smiling, she opened her arms, welcoming his hug, even if he did pick her up and spin around. When Pidge gave Haxus hugs next, Matt hugged Drek and Kullo.

“I’m so glad you’re okay.” Haxus whispered. “You are okay, right?”

“I’m wonderful.” Pidge responded. “And a bit stronger, I think.” She looked to the green lion. “We both are.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” Haxus said, still hugging his daughter. “We were so worried for you. I was probably driving everyone crazy with my pacing.”

“It was rough at first but we did well. The Olkari made us feel at home and safe. And learning from them… it’s because of them I was able to get stronger.” Pidge informed, getting Haxus to smile sincerely. They then looked over when Ryner approached them. “How is everyone?”

“Some minor injuries and those who had been enslaved need plenty of rest, but we lost no one today. And it is thanks to you and your friends that we were able to take back our home.” Ryner informed. “Thank you. All the knowledge we have here and I don’t know how to properly repay you.”

“There’s no need to repay us; we were doing our jobs. And it’s me who owes you. You were so hospitable toward Drek, Kullo, and me.” Pidge informed, gently pulling away from Haxus’ hug. “But… when the time comes and we need the help of the Olkari again, can we come to you for aid?”

“For anything. From simply just wanting to be here to bringing the fight to Zarkon when the time comes.” Ryner hugged Pidge close, smiling when the paladin returned the gesture. “The Olkari will always be there for you.”

“Thanks.” Pidge nodded.

After making sure the Olkari truly had their planet back, the paladins and others returned to the castle and departed. The kits were happy to be back, sitting together in the common room, Pidge even hugging her old Yupper plush.

“Oooh! I missed this thing!” Pidge cheered, hugging her toy. “When Green locked me out, I couldn’t access the toys I kept in her.”

“Wait… the green lion locked you out?” Allura asked.

“For a bit.” Pidge admitted. “When Haggar attacked her, she got corrupted. I thought something was wrong with me at first but… she was hurting. So I finally got past my fears and worries thanks to Drek and Kullo and worked with her, strengthening our bond and...” She stopped for a moment, thinking of what to say next. “My predecessor was Trigel… and she died long ago.”

“Indeed, along with the other paladins. Save for Zarkon who is still alive and trying to get the lions back.” Allura commented.

“Haggar did something… she corrupted their souls… and she sent Trigel to Green… to try and weaken me.” Pidge explained.

“Trigel’s spirit was...” Allura looked horrified.

“But she’s fine.” Pidge assured. “She’s still in Green… still waiting… still helping… it was thanks to her help I was able to make my bond with Green stronger.” She smiled. “I got to meet her… and she helped me.”

“I’m glad she was able to help you.” Allura nodded. “And I’m glad all three of you are safe. I’m sorry it took us so long.”

“Eh, we managed. Plus, I think Pidge really enjoyed our stay on Olkarion.” Drek commented.

“And it looks like you guys managed to get the teludav running properly again.” Kullo added. “I’m glad everything worked out.”

“Indeed.” Allura nodded. “For now, you three get some rest. We’ll continue our mission to liberating other planets after.” She got up and moved to return to the bridge. She stopped and looked back. “Welcome home, Drek. Kullo. Pidge.” she told them before leaving.

“Home.” Drek smiled as he leaned against Pidge. “This definitely is home.”

“It’s nice having a welcoming home like this.” Kullo nodded in agreement. “Pidge?”

“Most definitely.” Pidge confirmed. She smiled fondly as she looked around. “Yup. This is definitely home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, a lovely chapter and a conclusion to the Olkarion segment! And as bad as he is, even Sendak can't deny that Pidge is pretty smart and able to find a way to trick him. Even better? He was actually impressed! I love that little bit about him!  
> Anyway! Until next time!


	37. Still Children

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Curiosity killed the cat but satisfaction brought it back.  
> Pidge, Drek, and Kullo show to still be curious children, sticking their noses in places and trying to understand the things that go on. A couple things have changed while they were on Olkarion and Matt decides to be a good big brother and show them.

Children were often curious. More often than not, they stuck their noses into places and situations, seeking to indulge their curiosities. Whether or not they were stepping into a place they belonged or not all depended on the situation. Thankfully, this was the castle of lions and a room set up to simulate an open field. And inside was a black and white creature, gently chewing on some grass.

Pidge, Drek, and Kullo peered into the room, watching this content beast, watching as she twitched her tail now and then and ate her food. Never before had the trio seen such a being. They had seen different animals before, mostly from research that Pidge and Kullo did when curious, but this one was so unique.

There was a reason why this animal, whatever she was, was on the castle-ship. While the trio were on Olkarion, the others still had problems with the teludav. They had, during that time, located a place that actually had the needed scaultrite lens-stones. A space mall. It was a location filled with several shopping centers and Coran found what he needed there. During the search, though, Matt and Lance found something else. Video games and this animal Lance called a cow and named Kaltenecker.

“She seems docile.” Kullo observed.

“She could be trying to bait us in.” Drek looked skeptical. “She could just be waiting so she could attack us when we let our guards down.”

“I think she’s kinda cute. In a weird Lance sort of way.” Pidge commented.

“You think I’m cute?” Lance leaned over Pidge. The kits were startled, Pidge even crying out in surprise and flinging her arm out towards him, smacking him in the face and knocking him down.

Pidge looked down, realizing just who caught them off guard. “Oops. Sorry, Lance.”

“Yup, I may have deserved it; sneaking up on you three is not a good idea.” Lance sat back up. “But hey, you totally said I was cute.”

“Yeah, probably the same way she’d call a capybara or an armadillo cute if she ever sees one.” Matt teased as he approached. “Anyway! I see you guys are checking out Kaltenecker. Kinda cliché that a cow from Earth ended up way out her in space, though I’m suspecting she’s not first generation and may be a generation or so later from one that was and possibly bred with the alien equivalent to a cow judging by her teeth and ability to be milked without having a calf. Anyway, we now have a cow, yes, she is very docile, she doesn’t even mind Lance milking her.”

“Milking her?” Drek asked, looking confused.

“Well, I was going to do that so Hunk can work with it for some recipes, so I might as well show you.” Lance commented. Now that the others noticed, he had a bucket with him. Was it for milking? Lance stood up and went inside the room, motioning for the kits to follow him. “With milk from Kaltenecker, we can make all sorts of things. Especially milkshakes. I’ll be sure to have Hunk make some for you guys; you’d probably like them.” He pulled over a nearby stool and sat down.

“Now you see,” Lance continued, “you have to be careful when milking a cow. If you’re too gentle, you get nothing. If you’re too hard on her, well, my grandpa used to tell me stories of when he’d been kicked by a cow. He was fine in the end, but still.” He chuckled a bit. “Also, making sure the cow is well loved, nourished, and treated perfectly, in most cases, the milk will be perfect.” He reached under Kaltenecker, ready to milk her.

Pidge and Kullo, maintaining a safe distance so as to not crowd the animal and Lance, watched in amazement at how he moved and how milk was put into the bucket. Drek, on the other hand, looked horrified. Drek may have been a tough bugger and a fighter, but there were some things that still got under his skin. Before Lance was finished, the blue Galra was out of the room and around the corner, his eyes wide in shock.

“Drek?” Pidge peered out of the room after Lanced finished. “You okay?”

“What the cosmos was that!?” Drek exclaimed. “That… that… and you Earthlings have that as a normal?”

“What, do Galra not have milk?” Matt asked, stepping out. He motioned to Lance to go ahead and take the milk to the kitchen.

Drek looked away, grumbling a bit. Kullo was the one who stepped up. “Most are raised on special bases or even ships; rations are common, synthetically made.” the fuzzy Galra stated. “So I think it’s a culture shock for Drek.”

“That’s an understatement...” Drek muttered. “I don’t have to drink that, do I?” He shuddered a bit.

“No, you don’t have to; if you ever get curious and want to try, you can, but no one will make you.” Matt assured. “Sorry that this stunned you. You know, I think we have something else you may like. A good kind of cultural experience.”

This had the trio curious. With that, Matt took them to another room set up with wires, tech, a screen, and what looked like a primitive device. Video games. That was what Matt called it. He booted it up and when the screen turned on, showing the title screen for _Killbot Phantasm_ appeared. Matt glanced to each of the teens, refraining from laughing when he saw their eyes light up with joy and awe.

“Okay, time to teach you three how to play video games.” Matt told them. After a few hours of showing the three and getting them to play, he found it was a big hit. They took to playing and even taking turns very well. With them occupied, he decided to leave them be.

“Ah, Matt,” Haxus greeted when they passed each other in the hall, “I was just looking for Pidge and the others. Normally Pidge and Drek would be training, but...”

“Lance and I kinda were giving them some cultural experiences.” Matt hummed. “Lance milked Kaltenecker, which Drek did not take well, and I showed them video games. Which they are handling so much better than when Lance and I first played games when we were younger.” He chuckled a bit. “Lance and I argued. Kolivan grounded both of us.” Haxus couldn’t help but snicker a bit. “Yup. But Pidge, Drek, and Kullo? They’re taking turns, helping each other out, and being perfect about it.”

“Well, since they’re probably having fun, I won’t bring up training to them.” Haxus turned on his heel to walk with Matt. Being told that the three were having fun and taking it as them acting like children, he felt this was perfect. The universe was harsh and cruel around them and they were brought up in it, but it didn’t mean they couldn’t have time off to enjoy themselves. And since Zarkon wasn’t chasing them down at the moment and they haven’t been attacked or come across other Galra, he decided it was in their best interest to be the kits they were.

“We didn’t get to properly talk much.” Haxus stated. “So much has been happening, good and bad alike.”

“Hmm? Was something on your mind?” Matt inquired.

“Many things. But I think the biggest thing I can think of is how happy I am that you and Pidge got to meet.” Haxus informed. “I think that was good for her and she really needed it. And when things seemed iffy back when Sendak took over the castle, you didn’t stop having faith in her. You didn’t give up on her.” He smiled. “And you were even very quick to accept Drek and Kullo.”

“Fifteen years ago, my sister was taken. I never even met her then, only saw her in a video call, but… then she was gone.” Matt stated. “Now I’m out here and I pretty much have three younger siblings and I am loving every moment of it. I want to be there for them, be the big brother they all deserve.”

“And I’m sure they appreciate it.”

“Drek might not with at least the incident involving Kaltenecker, but I think I made it better with the video game.” Matt chuckled. “I like having them around. I wish they didn’t have to continue dealing with this war, but...”

“One way or another, they probably would have to deal with it, even if we found a way to keep them hidden and safe from it.” Haxus admitted. “But they’re not alone. They have each other and they have all of us.”

Matt nodded. He watched Haxus for a moment. He was definitely a good father. He was always looking out for Pidge; he did his best to let her grow and be strong, but he showed how much he cared for her, from both looking after his daughter and to panicking over her safety under certain circumstances.

“While it still saddens me that Pidge had to grow up like this, I’m kinda glad she did, too.” Matt admitted. “I mean, it’s still horrible, but it could’ve been worse. Instead, she got you, you did well in raising her, and she’s got her friends.”

“I did what I could to protect her. At first it was my duty because I am a Blade, but… it quickly turned into that parental desire to take care of a child. I cannot replace her parents… but I like to think I at least was a good parent.”

“You still are.” Matt assured. “You definitely still are.”

-+-+-+-

No one thought twice about leaving three teenagers alone with a video game. If anything, a trio who learned some proper discipline and liked doing all sorts of things would be expected to be found elsewhere in the castle, occupying themselves, learning about the castle, doing something. No. Instead, they were found in the same room Matt left them in, the three curled in together, fast asleep.

“I didn’t think there would be any harm in this… but I think they even forgot to eat since I introduced them to video games.” Matt declared. He watched as Pidge used Drek’s stomach as a pillow and Kullo was hugging onto her. They really did like to stay close. “But… they are adorable like that.” He brought out his datapad and took a picture.

“Matt, have you loca-” Krolia peered into the room. She stopped when she saw the trio fast asleep, Pidge grumbling a bit; she may have been waking up. She, as well as some of the others, had been trying to locate the trio, worried when they heard nothing from them for too long and didn’t see them getting food, training, or learning about the castle. Seeing them there, curled up, Krolia couldn’t help but smile. “Yes, they never grew out of it.” She sounded way too pleased about that.

Pidge sat up and rubbed her eyes. “Nnn… it’s too early for roll call…” she mumbled.

“It’s not too early for food, though. You three skipped four meals.” Matt informed.

“Huh?” Pidge looked over to see him and Krolia. She then looked down and around her, seeing Drek and Kullo still asleep. “How long were we playing the game?”

“Long enough, you gameaholics.” Matt teased. He knelt down beside Kullo, nudging him until he woke up. Before he moved to Drek, the other was stirring on his own, sitting up. “Okay, let’s get you three to wake up a bit more and then some food.”

“I’ll let Allura know we found them.” Krolia chuckled. “And transfer those photos to me; Kolivan and Haxus would love them, too.”

“Yes, Krolia.” Matt called after the Blade as she left. He then turned his attention back to his little siblings, the group still working on waking up. “Okay, next time, I’m setting a timer for gaming until you three learn some self-control.” he informed them, his tone teasing but his intentions serious.


	38. Sometimes Being an Earthling Sucks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge discovers the hard way that there are indeed sicknesses that Earthlings get. While the others care for her, Sendak watches from afar, planning his next move.

Haxus watched Pidge closely, worry settling in on his features. It hadn’t been that long since they reunited after the younger trio ended up on Olkarion, but afterwards, Pidge started to show signs of being sick. To the worried father, though, his only saving grace was that it was more than the headaches; simple headaches made him fret about Haggar trying to get to Pidge. However, he was still worried about Pidge, especially since her temperature was higher than normal, she had no appetite, and she was coughing and wheezing.

“What do you think?” Haxus asked as Krolia checked on Pidge. Having lived on Earth for so long and worked with Earthlings and raised a group of them, she and the others knew plenty about an Earthling’s health and sicknesses they could get. “How bad is it? She’ll… she’ll be fine, right?”

“Well, we’ll probably need to get medicine so we can keep it under control, but Pidge seems to have come down with a common Earth sickness known as the flu.” Krolia explained. “But with medicine and proper care, she’ll recover. We’ll want to keep her away from the others, though; while we’ve seen no signs of an Earthling’s flu affecting us Galra, the boys can still get it from her. Keith is an iffier case since he never got sick when he was much younger, but still.” She ran her hand through Pidge’s hair, pushing it out of her face. “You’ll recover. May take about a movement, but you’ll get better.”

“Ugh… I hate to suggest it, but can’t we do the healing pod? I hate this...” Pidge grumbled. She was tired, sore, hungry but held no appetite, could hardly keep anything down, she hated the flu. “I’ve never been sick like this before...”

“You’ve never been exposed to other Earthlings before and most Galran sicknesses are Galran exclusive.” Krolia reminded. “Though a healing pod…”

“Unfortunately, that won’t be possible.” Coran informed. “Healing pods are designed for stasis and injuries. It actually doesn’t aid in sickness.”

“Great...” Pidge tried to snuggle down into the blankets more.

“Though we do have different medicines. While designed mostly to treat Alteans, they will help others, too; the proper dosage will need to be determined though for your species and even size.” Coran continued.

“I know enough of treating children, so I’ll go through those and get what we need ready.” Krolia nodded. “Our biggest thing is to make sure Pidge’s fever doesn’t spike. A slight fever is okay, but if it gets any higher, we’ll want to get it brought back down.” She stood up and tucked Pidge in more. “We’ll get you treated.”

“If being an Earthling means getting sick like this, I hate it.” Pidge sighed.

“We’ll get this cared for, don’t you worry. You just do your part and rest.” Haxus informed.

“I’ll make sure the others know Pidge will be fine, but being away from them is for the best.” Krolia stated. “Let us know if something seems wrong. Or if something changes and you worry more, Haxus.”

“Okay.” Haxus nodded. He watched Coran and Krolia leave, the two going to let the others know and probably even get some medicine. Normally, since Kullo and Drek were living in the castle now, Pidge would have snuggled up with them, but to be safe, even they were kept away; the adults were not taking any chances. At least he was there, letting Pidge snuggle in closer. He took to laying down beside her and putting a protective arm over his kit. It was like when she was much smaller and younger; he did what he could to reassure her that things would be fine.

“I’ve never been sick like this before, have I?” Pidge inquired.

“Once, but you were much younger and trying a treat Throk offered you.” Haxus reminded. “It was an allergic reaction and made you ill for a couple of quintants.” He smiled softly. “He meant well, he didn’t know your stomach couldn’t handle it.” While talking about Sendak was occasionally iffy, both could admit there were good memories, too. “Sendak was worried; he actually hit Throk for that. Pretty hard.” Pidge snickered a bit. She had nothing against Throk, but she found amusement in stories of Sendak showing to be a protective parent. “It wasn’t too bad, not like this, but we kept close to you, make sure you were fine. Just like I do even now.” He smiled when Pidge snuggled in closer. “Just rest; I’ll be here for you.”

“Thanks, Papa.” Pidge mumbled, snuggling in close.

-+-+-+-

Sendak was tracking the Castle of Lions, following it through space all while keeping a safe distance. He had promised Pidge that their paths would cross again, he just didn’t know how or where. To ensure he wouldn’t be noticed, he kept back from the castle, keeping off of its radar.

“Commander Sendak, we’ve tracked where the castle landed. But… it’s… um...” The lieutenant looked over the data. “Not exactly one of ours.” In other words, the planet had no worth to the Galra and they hadn’t conquered it. “They usually go for occupied planets...”

“Something has come up and they are resting.” Sendak stated.

“Should we plan an attack then?” the lieutenant inquired.

“No, a mission like this would require patience and stealth. I’ll go in alone.” Sendak informed. “Have a ship prepared for my departure. And don’t do anything reckless in my absence.”

“Of course, sir.”

-+-+-+-

It hadn’t been long since Pidge got sick. She had been feverish for a few days and could barely keep anything down. She was thankful for what Hunk called _oatmeal and toast_ , eating a small bit of that actually sitting well with her. It didn’t do everything to give her her strength or make her recover quickly, though, and Krolia was careful with medicine so that Pidge, being so small and young, didn’t get worse or hurt from it.

Though still sick, Pidge hated just laying in bed, even if she had Haxus with her to keep an eye on her. To let Pidge at least get some fresh air but not exert herself, a planet that was peaceful and unaffected by the Galra was located. They landed there and even near a village where the team could hopefully resupply. And sitting outside, Pidge happily sat on a spread out blanket and hugged her Yupper toy she brought out.

“She’s still got a fever.” Krolia checked to see how Pidge was doing. “It’s gone up a small bit… half a degree…”

“Half a degree is bad, right?” Haxus asked. Though he raised Pidge, it was not an easy task. He knew nothing about Earthlings and their health, what was good and what was bad. Earthlings were new and he didn’t have contact with the others to even begin understanding his daughter.

“In some cases, it can be.” Krolia confirmed. “With Pidge already facing a fever...” She sighed. “We’ll still need to keep an eye on it and hope it breaks.”

Haxus nodded. “And the fresh air?”

“As long as she doesn’t exert herself, this should be fine.”

“Good.” Pidge let herself fall back and roll to her side, her arms tightening around her Yupper. “I feel like I’m suffocating in the castle. I like getting out for air.” She yawned. “Nn… I feel tired...”

“Sleep is good; go ahead and nap out here.” Krolia reminded.

“When can I sit around with the others? I miss them… Matt, Drek, Kullo...”

“When you’re better; we don’t want to risk the others getting sick, especially the other humans.” Krolia informed. “Though they’ve had their shots, there is still the chance. Just be patient.”

“Ugh.”

Krolia chuckled. She then looked to Haxus. “I’m going to check the area, make sure we’re still fine here. You’ve got Pidge?”

“Of course.” As if anyone needed to ask. As much as possible, Haxus would always care for his daughter. He did his best to protect her all while giving her space to grow and try to be herself. And when Pidge isn’t well or scared, he made sure to be with her and look after her.

Haxus sat there, smiling when Pidge shifted to rest her head on his leg, using him as a pillow. He certainly didn’t mind and was glad that Pidge was comfortable like that. So, letting her rest, he sat mostly still, simply running his fingers through her hair.

Not too far and without anyone noticing yet, Sendak had followed and landed a much smaller ship, hidden in a forest. He had located the castle and was determining the threat level, obstacles, and the likelihood of getting Pidge. If he at least got Pidge, the empire could get her lion another time; the paladin was the important part at the moment.

The others had left the castle, going to get supplies. He was certain some still remained inside, but outside were mainly Haxus and Krolia. They would fight with everything they had in them to keep Pidge safe and the commander was prepared for that. When Krolia left to check their surroundings, he decided to step out.

“Well, it looks like my little warrior has become rather lax. Letting her grow soft, Haxus?” Sendak inquired, drawing a sword he had on him. With his previous arm, it was the perfect weapon on its own, but with this new and smaller one, he took up the sword again, just as he had long, long ago.

“Sendak!” Haxus hissed. He was quick yet careful to slip out from under Pidge, his daughter having already fallen asleep. He brought out his own weapon. “I can’t exactly say I’m surprised you’re here.” he stated. “But you can be sure that I won’t let you have Pidge; I’m certain that’s why you’re here.”

“I’m returning her to the empire where she belongs.” Sendak stated. “And I won’t let a lowly traitor like you stop me.” He snarled a bit when Krolia showed up, armed and ready. She must have heard them and returned or had suspicions. Either way, he had two traitors to the empire to deal with, but he was prepared. He was ready to fight them and take back Pidge.

And he did. Sendak went at the two Blades. He was bigger than them both and while there were two and they were also trained, he was not going to give up or surrender. Of course, neither were the two Blades. They kept on their toes and utilized their smaller sizes compared to the well built figure of the warrior, going at him and hoping to take him down. But there was one problem.

They didn’t fully learn from the first time.

Haxus made the mistake of getting careless; he heard Pidge grumble as she stirred from her much needed nap that he got distracted for a tick or two; those two ticks were enough for Sendak, though. He managed to grab up his former lieutenant. Though not as easily as he had before with his other arm, he still succeeded. And he succeeded again in throwing him at Krolia.

Neither of them were rendered unconscious. Sendak was not surprised by this and more than that, he was not unprepared. He procured a small device and tossed it over, causing it to expand and electrocute the two Blades. By this point in time, Pidge sat up up and saw this.

“Papa! Krolia!” she cried out. Before she could get up and check on them, Sendak grabbed hold of her, tucking the tiny girl under his arm. “Let me go!” She kicked, shoved, and even tried to claw at Sendak; if he dared put his hand near enough to her face, she’d bite him, too.

“Be silent; you’ll be back where you belong soon.” Sendak snarled. He looked to the Yupper plush and sighed. The least he could do was keep that comfort with Pidge; he grabbed it up, too, and returned to his ship, taking off and aiming to return to the battleship he commanded.

By the time Kolivan, who was inside the castle and going over data, came out, realizing something was wrong, Sendak had already left with Pidge. He went to the two Blades and got the device deactivated.

“I’m sorry, Kolivan… we did what we could.” Krolia grumbled. She ran a hand through her hair, static fully visible, the remaining electricity still charged. “We tried...”

“We’ll find her.” Kolivan assured. “Haxus...”

“I couldn’t protect her… I couldn’t protect my daughter...” Haxus shook his head. “But dammit… I’m not giving up on her. I’ll get her back...”

“I’ll contact the princess so we can take off after him; you two catch your breaths. And… hope that static wears off.” Kolivan smoothed out his fur, able to feel the charge with ease.


	39. A Father Never Harms His Child

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Pidge captured by Sendak, the team's only saving grace is Haxus' reassurances that Sendak would never intentionally harm Pidge. However, that didn't mean he wouldn't take her back to Haggar. Of course, even for Sendak, things do not go according to plan.

“Have you tracked where Sendak went?” Allura called as she ran to the bridge, getting to her station.

“We’ve tracked him as far as a battle cruiser; after that, they made a hyper jump...” Krolia admitted. “Kolivan and Antok left in one of the pods to see if they could catch up or get a better sense of where to find Sendak’s ship.”

“Shiro, Hunk, Lance, Keith, you four join them.” Allura ordered.

“No need to tell us twice.” Shiro nodded as he and the others took off for their lions.

“Coran, we need to launch and work on scanning for them.” Allura told her adviser.

“Right away, Princess!” Coran did as instructed.

Allura was determined. While their brief history together showed them constantly losing Pidge, it also showed them getting her back. She was certain they would get her back. But how… “I hope she’s okay… Sendak grabbing her...”

“It’s not Sendak you need to worry about having her.” Haxus informed. “He would never deliberately or intentionally harm her unless he found it absolutely necessary. Which was only one time.” Allura looked to him, worry in her eyes. “Before you ask, no, none of those scars on her was his doing.”

“How can you be certain he won’t harm her?” Allura asked. “In his eyes, Pidge betrayed him. Wouldn’t there be repercussions?”

“A lot of yelling.” Haxus assured. “The worst he’d probably do is put her over his knee again and smack her on the backside. He’s only ever done that once before and it was the only time he ever hit her.”

“What’d she do to earn that?” Krolia questioned. She went over when Haxus motioned for her and listened to him whisper. “Yeah, I’d do the same to any of the others growing up if they said that.” She shook her head. “Where did she even learn that word? Certainly not Prorok or Bogh. And if she learned it from Thace...”

“Most likely one of the others she met back at Command or on another base.” Haxus stated. “But my point is… he wouldn’t go out of his way to hurt her… it’s Haggar I’m most worried about if he manages to get Pidge to that witch...”

“We’ll do our best to find her before that could happen.” Allura nodded. She then looked over to where Drek and Kullo were. Matt was sitting with and comforting the duo. The kits weren’t worried when it came to Sendak, but they definitely knew it would be bad if Pidge was successfully taken to Haggar. “We won’t give up.” she assured them in a determined tone. “We’ll get Pidge back.”

-+-+-+-

“Sir,” the lieutenant gave a salute when Sendak was back on board and on the bridge, holding Pidge under his mechanical arm, “um… shall I escort… the paladin to a... um… a cell?” He stared for a moment, trying to figure out the situation. Pidge was red faced and squirming. She was restrained with her hands behind her back and a mask meant to silence her and keep her from biting on her face.

Sendak gave an amused snort, something the lieutenant didn’t expect. “She’s not one to underestimate. I know better than to leave her in a cell, even if it is guarded. She’ll remain on the bridge where I can keep an eye on her.” He moved and took Pidge to a spot on the bridge, binding her to a column to keep her from trying to move away. “At least you still haven’t lost that fire in your eyes, even now as you’re still fighting against us.”

Pidge tried to shout at Sendak, but her words were muffled. She then huffed and looked away, wriggling some to try and find any sort of weakness in her restraints.

Sendak scoffed a bit before looking to his lieutenant. “Dazer, contact Emperor Zarkon.” he commanded. “Inform him that we have Pidge.”

Dazer, Sendak’s lieutenant, nodded. “Yes, sir.” He went to the main control console to establish communications. Before he could patch them through, though, the ship shook and the alarms went up. “Commander, we’re being attacked!”

“By who?” Sendak stormed over. “How were they not detected?”

“I’m not sure, sir.” Dazer worked to scramble the fighters, but only a few got out before damage was dealt to the launch bays, keeping the others still docked. “They’ve kept the fighters from getting out. And the ion cannon is heavily damaged.” He looked to Sendak. “It’s a full on attack, sir. What do we do?”

Sendak had always been a _victory or death_ sort of guy, never giving in and fighting until the end. However, he had a mission to get Pidge back to the empire. “Is the hyperdrive functional?”

“Yes, sir.” Dazer didn’t need anymore to be said. He knew his commander wasn’t running away, but rather seeing the mission through. He readied the engines, preparing them for the jump. Before he could speed off, they were hit by a series of attacks. The jump activated partway through the assault, destabilizing the ship and trajectory.

It was a rare occurrence. Damaging the hyperdrive was a difficult task with how closed in the generator and engines were, being protected by not only the main hull of the ship, but the interior walls and corridors as well. Whoever attacked had strong enough weapons to breach, though. With this being a rare situation, there was no telling how things would go.

Of course, crashing was one of the probabilities they would face. There was a small planet in their path and crashing went from probable to inevitable. Worse yet, even if there was time to get to an escape pod, with the hyperdrive, though damaged, still activated, the pods wouldn’t launch. Seeing their path and knowing what would happen, Sendak acted.

The commander undid Pidge’s restraints and picked her up. He then grabbed his lieutenant by the back of his armor, shoving the older and larger of the two into a corner first and then the paladin onto his lap. He then braced himself over them, keeping them covered and secure as the ship was torn apart in its damaged state while entering the atmosphere. It then crashed into the surface, breaking further and being torn into segments.

When the movement settled down and the crashing stopped, Sendak leaned back a bit, looking around. He then looked to see Pidge shuddering as she made a noise behind her mask. Coughing? He grumbled and removed the mask. Not like they were in a situation she could do much and he wasn’t dumb enough to give her full freedom of her hands since they were still bound.

“Dazer, evaluate our situation and the damage.” Sendak ordered, pulling Pidge up off of the lieutenant’s lap.

“Evaluate?” Pidge asked, the snarky attitude already showing. Sendak was beginning to regret taking off the muzzle. “We just crashed after a failed hyperjump! I don’t even need to see it from here, there probably is no actual ship left! Just debris!”

“Be silent or I will have you silenced again!” Sendak snarled. “Dazer!”

Dazer was quick to check the information. Or at least try. “Sir, we have no power. Either the crystal was completely separated from the power conduit or..”

“Destroyed.” Sendak finished. His ears dropped a bit when he heard Pidge chortle. He gave her a glare.

“Oh, now wouldn’t that be ironic if that were the case.” Pidge smirked. “You know… after you had me destroy the castle’s crystal?”

“You best be silent if you know what’s good for you.” Sendak snarled.

“Or what? Not like you’ll actually hurt me.” Pidge sized Sendak up. It was far from her first time and each time she had done so before, it only resulted in Sendak yelling at her; on a rare occasion, she would throw something at him; last time she threw her shoe at the back of his head. “Oh wait… you will… by taking me back to Haggar...” She scowled at that idea. “I refuse to give in so easily and let you take me back there.”

Sendak sneered. Defiant. A total pain in the ass. Pidge was definitely stubborn when she wanted to be, and this time she seemed even more open about going against him. “Fight all you want, but you aren’t getting out of this!” he snapped as he jabbed a finger at Pidge’s chest. “You’re a part of the Galran Empire and will be stripped of this nonsense those others had filled your brain with. You will return to where you belong!”

Pidge stepped back; if her hands weren’t bound, she would have smacked his hand away. “Belong? Like hell I belong there!” she hissed. “I belong with my friends, my family, and with the rest of Team Voltron! I belong in the Castle of Lions, not living as some tool to be used by Zarkon!”

“A tool? You have been given so much by Emperor Zarkon and you have earned you place!” Sendak tried to remind, though it was far from gentle as he bellowed at her. “You’re not a tool! You’re a soldier!”

“Not like there’s a difference between the two in this stupid war! Have you seen the way others are treated?” Pidge inquired. “Weaklings are practically tossed aside, sent on missions where they will almost always die. Speaking out of turn gets you punished. Fighting for what you truly believe in if it goes against the empire gets you punished. And me? Born to some twisted humour of Fate that gets me landed in this messed up place.”

“I thought I taught you better than this. But clearly Haxus has been spinning nonsense in your brain and the Princess and her friends have gotten to you!”

“You’re so quiznaking ignorant! They did nothing wrong except help me come back to my senses!”

“Senses? You had more common sense in training camp! This? What you’re doing now?”

“Commander Sendak, young Paladin, perhaps-” Dazer tried to step in to interfere.

“Stay out of this!” Sendak and Pidge both turned on the lieutenant, quickly silencing him. Stunned, Dazer looked away awkwardly, mentally kicking himself for daring to get between them.

“Sendak… can’t you just… look at me?” Pidge looked like she was now pleading with him, hurt in her eyes. “Can’t you see how much has changed? And it’s not because of how I was raised. The things Haggar has done… the experiments, the magic… it hurt so much… and each time it broke a little bit of me away… chipped away like a planet drained of its quintessence… and you just blindly send me back because you believe everything Zarkon and Haggar tell you...” She sighed and shuddered. Anger? To Sendak, maybe, but to her, she knew she was feeling worse. Her body felt hotter than usual and she felt her head spin. “I am a Paladin of Voltron… but I will not serve Zarkon and fight at his side.”

Sendak snarled a bit. “If you want to be treated like the paladin you claim to be, then s-” He froze. In a split moment, he watched as Pidge started to lose balance. He noticed before that her face was redder than usual, but he had been certain it had to do with her anger. Before she could fall, he caught holder of her. “Pidge? Pidge!” He put his hand to her forehead. Though humans were not a species the Galrans knew much about and Sendak didn’t know much about health and sicknesses, he did recognize when Pidge was warmer than usual. “You’re ill.” he whispered. He undid Pidge’s restraints, not wanting her to be hurt or restricted. No wonder she was coughing earlier, she must have had some strange sickness. He felt it probably came from those other Earthlings or the Alteans.

Sendak sat on the floor of what was left of the ship, pulling Pidge up on her lap. He nearly winced when she started coughing, a rattling noise sounding in her chest. He didn’t recall such a sound in her before, but he had heard it in another commander many deca-phoebs ago. It was not always a good sign; as strong and skilled as that commander was, it got worse and became an infection that later claimed her life. He did not want that for Pidge, not because she was a paladin, but because…

“She’s not well.” Sendak stated. “Dazer, check the remains of the ship; see if there are any supplies, especially for first aid!” He may not have had any experience when it came to medicines, but he could damn well try so he could protect Pidge.

“Yes, sir!” Dazer wasted no time, not even to question the odd look of worry and compassion settling in the commander’s good eye. He ran off, hoping the emergency supplies was close enough and in tact.

Sendak looked down at Pidge, seeing her breathe heavily before going into a coughing fit. Grimacing, he set her down in the crook of his legs as he positioned them a bit, making a dip between them. He then removed the upper part of his armor before picking her back up, wanting her to be more comfortable in his hold. “It’s okay, Pidge. I’ve got you.” he assured softly as he held her close, letting her snuggle in. They may have been yelling at each other barely a dobosh, maybe two, ago, but she needed comfort and help and he, though he wouldn’t admit it to anyone, not even himself, still cared for her so much. She was, after all, still his little girl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes. I meme'd Dazer for the picture. Many of you may recognize the meme.  
> Originally he was going to be a nameless lieutenant and die in the crash, but I gave him a name and a face. So I had to keep him. I also had to stick to the theme of lieutenants for Sendak, too, that I've seen poked at for fun on Tumblr.   
> Anyway! I hope you guys enjoyed this! Until next time!


	40. Soft

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sendak finds himself thinking about the past and how much he truly did care for Pidge.

Sendak watched Pidge closely, keeping an eye on her breathing. He may not have studied medicine and sicknesses often and he definitely didn’t know much about Earthlings and their health, but he knew enough about Pidge to know what was fairly normal and good and what wasn’t. He knew she was exhausted, feverish, and seeking comfort with how she snuggled in close, letting his arms cover her and his fur that stuck out brush against her. As angry as the two had previously been with each other, they settled down enough so she could try and rest.

“Just be patient, Dazer’s looking for the medical kit.” Sendak spoke softly, a tone only ever used towards her. As much as he denied it, this girl was practically his daughter. He helped raise her, for crying out loud. From lessons about the empire to training. But it wasn’t just as a soldier he helped in. He recalled working with her, trying to get her to learn to walk, even holding her itty, bitty hands and guiding her. He remembered when she fell down after an attempt, walking from Haxus to him, making it a few feet. Oh how she cried. Instead of telling her she could get up and try again, he went over to her, helping her up and telling her to take her time, she would get it one day.

Sendak would never admit it to anyone, but he missed those days. He missed how sweet Pidge was, always wanting to be close or wandering off. How she would get fussy when they would try to sleep and only calm down when sleeping with either him or Haxus. He hated to say it, but several times they would sleep together, Pidge feeling safest between them.

“I knew nothing about raising a kit.” Sendak stated. “Haxus seemed to know exactly what to do, though. Heh, should’ve seen me when I first cleaned up after you.” He smirked a bit. “How something so small could make such a mess. Haxus… actually teased me about it. I even ended up calling Bogh; he always had tips for looking after you as you grew up.”

“I liked Bogh.” Pidge mumbled, showing to have been listening, at least a bit. “He was nice.”

“He knew a whole lot more than I did, not that I liked admitting it to him.” Sendak chuckled a bit. “I remembered even trying to feed you when we were weening you off your bottle. You liked to throw food at me. Only me. You were compliant for Haxus.”

“Bet you didn’t back down from that challenge.” Pidge whispered.

Sendak snorted a bit. He sure did back down after too long. He had to clean his fur out and Pidge needed to eat. “You didn’t back down from challenges either.” he reminded, pride in his voice. “You were hardly four deca-phoebs old when you challenged me to our first _sparring session_.” He may have called it that, but it was more like roughhousing. Pidge had grabbed hold of his leg and held on, wrapping her limbs around it.

-+-+-+-

_Sendak was checking some data, going over the suggestions and plans Haxus made. He may have been a skilled commander, able to conquer planets and defeat the insurgents, but he was thankful for his lieutenant’s ability to compile data, keep things organized, and make sure everything was in proper order. That on top of raising Pidge? He was definitely skilled._

_As he looked over the information, he heard a little “gotcha” and felt something wrap itself around his leg. He looked down. Pidge was holding on, a determined look on her little face. She may have been a different species, but she was very much like a kit of his own species. He didn’t need Bogh’s tips or Haxus’ observations to tell him what this was. He knew this well enough for even he remembered his own days as a kit. She was being playful while trying to tackle him. In short, she was roughhousing._

_“Oh ho, is my little warrior feeling so strong?” Sendak inquired, smirking a bit. He put the datapad aside and shook Pidge loose from his leg before stepping back. “Come at me then.”_

_Pidge squealed with delight; or maybe it was her attempt at a battle cry. Either way, she chased after him. Longer legs and better balance, Sendak danced around her, getting the girl to run around in circles, trying to grab at him._

_Pidge eventually lunged at Sendak, jumping up enough to grab onto his upper leg. He let out a dramatic sounding cry before falling back, controlling himself so neither of them, especially Pidge, got hurt. He landed on his back, his leg up in the air._

_“Victory is mine!” Pidge cheered as she jumped off and onto Sendak’s stomach, making him grunt at the sudden weight change. “Do you surrender?”_

_“I never surrender! Victory or tickles!”_

_“Then you chose tickles!” Pidge responded as best as she could. She then started tickling him._

_Commander Sendak, trained personally by Emperor Zarkon, one of his best and most trusted soldiers ever, and a feared man to many who have fought him, was not a ticklish man. Of course, when it came to Pidge, he knew how to laugh perfectly, finding her determination adorable, amusing, and overall heart warming. His laugh was full of warmth as he splayed his arms out._

__

_“Oh no! The great warrior Pidge! She has defeated me! Oooh!” He let his head turn to the side, tongue sticking out of his mouth. He played dead._

_“I gotcha! I gotcha!” Pidge sang out. She then watched Sendak. “Huh? Sendak? Sendy!” She scooted up along his stomach and sat on his chest; her weight was hardly a thing and wasn’t a problem for the commander. She leaned in closer to his face. “Sendy, you okay? I didn’t hurt you, did I?” She poked his cheek. “Sendy?”_

_“Boo!” Sendak quickly turned his head. Pidge let out a playful squeal as she rolled back. With this, the Galran sat up and started tickling her, making her giggle, kick, squirm, and holler. He then picked her up, holding her above his head. “A true little warrior you are! You have defeated me in your first battle!”_

_Pidge giggled. She then held out her arms. Smiling, Sendak obliged, bringing her in close. She snuggled in the crook of his arm, feeling the fur surround her. “Mm, warm.” She always loved his fur. It was soft, warm, and comforting. After her playful activity, it didn’t take long for her to doze off, the small girl snoring a bit as she clung to Sendak’s undershirt._

_“Sleep well, my little Pidge.” Sendak whispered, leaning his face in and kissing the top of her head._

_-+-+-+-_

“You were young,” Sendak told Pidge, “I doubt you’d remember. But… you were so determined. And then you were worried that I was really hurt.” He sighed. “You truly were different from what you were raised and trained for.” No response. Looking down, curious, Sendak felt the soft smile form. Pidge had fallen asleep. Good. He may not have known much about health and sickness, but he did know rest was a good thing. He lowered his head and gently kissed the top of her head. “Even with you being so rebellious…” he whispered.

Sendak looked to see that the Yupper plush he brought with him was near and still safe. Good. Pidge would have been devastated to lose it. He moved to get it, cradling the paladin in one arm, not that it was hard. By the time he grabbed it, Dazer returned, concern showing in his eyes. Sighing, Sendak laid Pidge down with the toy, having her use it as a pillow. He then went over. “You couldn’t find it?” He wasn’t mad.

“No, sir; there’s so much damage and some parts are on fire.” Dazer admitted.

“Well, you tried.” Sendak sighed.

“I did salvage some parts, though; I may be able to set up a radio so we can send a transmission to another ship and get picked up.” Dazer had some good news. “It could take a couple of vargas to get it functional, though.”

“Then get to work on it; I’ll stand guard.” Sendak ordered, moving to keep watch over the area.

Dazer watched Sendak for a few ticks before situating himself a few feet from Pidge, working on the radio so they could get off of that planet and deliver the paladin. Sendak would never admit it, especially not his lieutenant, but the other Galra knew his commander was worried and soft for Pidge. He wondered if Sendak really would deliver Pidge.

“Hmm?” After a varga or so, Sendak noticed a couple of the lions entering the atmosphere, scanning over the planet. “Voltron.”

“Sir, should we move location?” Dazer asked.

Sendak stared at the sky for a moment. It wouldn’t take them long to notice the crash and decide to investigate it. He then looked over Pidge. He couldn’t medically treat her himself and he knew she was in pain and ill. _It hurt so much, and each time it broke a little bit of me away; chipped away like a planet drained of its quintessence. And you just blindly send me back._ He thought of the girl’s worlds.

“I really am soft for her, aren’t I?” he grumbled.

“Sir?” Dazer was sure he heard his commander correctly, but like hell he would let him know that.

“Leave Pidge here; the others will find her and take care of her better. You and I will move location.” Sendak ordered. Their location wasn’t too far; it allowing them to continue seeing where Pidge was resting. It didn’t take long for the two lions, the red and blue ones, to land. From the lions, the paladins exited along with Krolia and Haxus.

“She’s here, thank goodness.” Haxus was relieved as he scooped Pidge up into his arms; Krolia picked up the Yupper. He looked around.

“Haxus, we need to get going.” Krolia reminded.

“I don’t get it...” Haxus mumbled. “Sendak...”

“He’s not here now; we need to go while we can.” Krolia pressed. Haxus nodded and complied, pushing his thoughts aside.

When the lions left again, Sendak stepped out. At his side, Dazer stood, watching where the ship remained. “So… how to we explain this to Command?”

“After our crash, we lost track of the paladin during the turmoil.” Sendak responded.

Dazer nodded. “Yes, sir.” It wasn’t a total lie and he didn’t feel bad about saying that. “I’ll get that radio working so we can get off of here.”

-+-+-+-

When Pidge woke up, she didn’t expect to be back in her room. Seeing that she was, though, she felt content. She hugged onto the Yupper plush that was near her, snuggling into it.

“Glad to know you’re awake; you’ve been sleeping for the better part of a quintant.” Haxus said as he sat on the edge of Pidge’s bed. He smiled when she rolled over to look at him. “How do you feel?”

“Still groggy.”

“Well, you’re still sick, but you’re recovering.” Haxus ran a hand through Pidge’s hair.

“I had a dream.” Pidge stated. “I dreamed that Sendak came to take me. But we crashed. And I got worse. And he held me in his arms again, protecting me.”

Haxus didn’t know everything, but he was certain that it wasn’t a dream. “Who knows, he probably did. He may be hot tempered, but he still did care for you.” He chuckled when Pidge yawned. “How about a bite to eat, get something in you, then you can go back to bed, hmm?”

“Yeah, I’d like that.” Pidge nodded. “Papa?” Haxus looked to her, a small _hmm_ noise escaping him. “Sendak and I don’t see eye to eye. But… is it bad that I can’t ever hate him? Be truly mad at him? Care for him?”

“Of course not.” Haxus assured. “He may be a pain with a temper and not always think things through… but he did have his good qualities, too.” Pidge nodded, glad to hear that. “Now, you care to walk down to the kitchen or do you want me to bring you something?”

“Will you carry me there?”

Haxus chuckled. “Of course.” he responded, picking his daughter up and letting her wrap her limbs around him. He smiled softly as he carried Pidge to the kitchen. He had been so worried about her during her absence, he was relieved to have her back.


	41. More Than Just the Paladins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Team Voltron is more than just the paladins. From a human to the Alteans, from the Blade of Marmora to a couple of kits, they're a team and they all work together. But not everyone seems to see it like that.

“Are you sure you’re feeling okay?” Kullo asked, his ears pushing part of his helmet down as he showed his concern. “You don’t feel too warm? Or sick to your stomach? Your face doesn’t feel swollen?”

“Ku, I promise, I’m feeling perfectly fine.” Pidge assured. “Besides, if I showed I wasn’t okay, do you think Papa would have let me leave the castle?”

“I suppose...” Kullo sighed. “I’m just worried… you spent the past movement being sick… then there was the incident with Sendak, and we had a few close run-ins and you had to fly Green while being sick...” He made a small whining noise. “Where’s Drek? He’s stubborn enough to argue with you on this and make sure you take it easy…”

“You’re doing a good enough job at that, Ku.” Pidge assured. “It’s part of your charm and shows how much you care.” She then looked around. “Hmm… knowing Drek, he’s probably competing with Lance again. Those two really do get competitive with each other.”

**“Yeah, and I’m totally winning this!”** Lance chimed over the comm.

**“Fighter ships still only count as one each! And those battlements don’t count!”** Drek hissed. **“AND! You’ve got an advantage! You’re flying in a mechanical lion! I’m on the ground here!”**

**“Picky, picky.”**

**“You two get along or I’m sending Mom or Pidge after you.”** Keith added. **“Or both.”**

**“Oh that’s just mean, Keith!”** Lance whined.

Pidge rolled her eyes, but otherwise she couldn’t help but smirk. “Anyway, give us a few moments and we should have the last of the sentries shut down.”

**“Good work, Pidge, Kullo.”** Allura praised. **“And according to the biorhythms, there are no more biological threats.”**

“Okay, and then we should have this planet back in three, two, one.” Kullo commented as he got the last of the data put in. “How is it?” He looked up to see the black lion being trailed by some fighter ships before they dropped.

**“Good work, team!”** Shiro told them. **“We’ll do a final sweep, then meet up. Allura, you should be safe to land the castle now.”**

**“Will do.”** Allura confirmed.

The planet Puig. It was another in their path to be liberated, freed from the tyrannical rule of Zarkon. Despite the work that the team did to free the Puigians from their oppression, not all members were exactly welcome sights. It was understandable why, they had been conquered by the Galra so long ago, but even the mere mention of some Galra, the Blade of Marmora, being their allies, it was not a welcome subject.

“Ugh, I feel even less welcomed here than I did our second deca-phoeb at training camp.” Drek muttered, sticking to the side and out of the way.

“Yeah, and we personally gave Commander Brondak a reason to be fed up with us.” Pidge added. “But these people...”

“I mean, they lived oppressed lives… can’t exactly fault them for feeling like this, right?” Kullo asked.

“The Olkari welcomed us and didn’t have an issue accepting that there are good and bad people alike within the same species.” Drek reminded.

“Yeah, but the Olkari see things and others differently.” Kullo pointed out. “Not everyone’s like the Olkari.”

“Oh.” Drek’s ears went down. “Is it wrong to just hide back in the castle and play video games? This isn’t fun.”

“We can ask Allura; she is wanting to help others see that there are allies in unlikely places so we-” Pidge stopped when some young Puigians, probably around the trio’s age, came up. “Hmm? Is something the matter?” Of course she wondered if something was wrong; the small group looked worried.

“You’re one of the paladins, right? Who form Voltron?” a Puigian girl inquired.

“Yes, that’s right. The green one to be exact.”

“If you’re a paladin, why are you… staying with Galra?” She looked to Drek and Kullo cautiously, as though worried they would strike.

“Oh c’mon...” Drek muttered bitterly as he looked away. Kullo didn’t speak, but his ears drooped as he let out an audible whine.

Pidge glared at the Puigians. “Because they’re friends. They helped keep me strong when I felt lost and weak. And they’re important members to the team, too.” she nearly snapped. “I’m surprised you’re not afraid of me, either. After all, I was raised by the Empire.” She scoffed a bit before taking Kullo’s hand. “C’mon, let’s go sit elsewhere.” She pulled Kullo along as Drek followed after them.

“Hopefully that comment won’t bite you in the butt.” Drek commented. “I mean, announcing to these people your upbringing? What if the team loses a potential ally?”

“Then it’s on them for judging others by the circumstances of their births and upbringings.” Pidge commented. “The fact that you two are Galra and I was raised in the Empire… it shouldn’t matter. Just like it shouldn’t matter that the Blade of Marmora are Galra, too. Hell, even Keith is part Galra… but he has the benefit of the doubt because he looks human.” Pidge found a spot to sit down against a wall. She smiled when Kullo sat down with her, snuggling in close. “It’ll be fine, Kullo. It’s their loss that they don’t get to know you more and like we do.” she informed. “If they did take the time to get to know you, they’d adore you so much, we’d never get you back.”

That made the fuzzy Galra chuckle. “Thanks, Pidge.” he said. “I know I shouldn’t let this get to me, I understand why they’re not as accepting, but...” He sighed.

“Yeah.” Pidge nodded. She may have been human and accepted because of that, but she still felt it to some degree. And with her friends facing this, it hurt her more. “Hopefully, in time, people can accept that there are some good Galra, too.”

“That’s going to take a lot of time.” Drek pointed out.

“Yeah, that’s a given.” Pidge confirmed. “But it’s still possible. Especially if they stop cowering and learn to stand up.”

Pidge sat with the others for a while longer until Allura approached them, the Puigian leader not far behind. Seeing the two kits with the paladin, he looked leery. Allura, though, didn’t pay mind and spoke to Pidge.

“I was wondering where you were.” the princess said. “The Puigians were interested in seeing Voltron since you didn’t need to form him in this last fight. So, we were getting you guys together.”

Pidge went rigid for a bit. Form Voltron? Was that all the locals were interested in when there were more variables to taking their planet back than the giant robot or its lions? She then scowled. “No.”

“Huh?” Allura wasn’t the only one who was stunned. Next to Pidge, Kullo and Drek looked to their friend, shocked by her cold response. “Pidge, why is that?” She hoped for an answer.

“We’re defenders of the universe, not some publicity act for people who can’t even acknowledge the entire team and effort behind all of this.” Pidge got to her feet and went past Allura and to the Puigian leader. “For the record, we say _Team Voltron_. That’s it. We’re a team. And it’s not just Voltron!”

“Pidge, that’s enough.” Allura prompted, putting her hand on the paladin’s shoulder, hoping to ease her emotions. Nope. The young Earthling shoved it away. At this point, the other paladins were near and listening, Shiro even ready to remove Pidge from the situation.

“Our team consists of more than the five of us paladins. We have two Alteans who work equally hard in battle and help keep us together as a team, another Earthling who fights alongside us and supports us, and six Galra, some who raised the other paladins, one of which who adopted and raised my brother and one who is the mother to one of the paladins, then one of those Galra also raised me, and two are my best friends.” Pidge informed the leader. “We’re a team. We’re a family.”

“Look, I get it, you’ve been under Zarkon’s boot for so long… and it hurts. I know how it feels.” Pidge held her hand to her chest to emphasize the pain and that she could empathize with the Puigians. “Even I once lived under that control… at one point seeing almost nothing wrong with the Galran way. There are many out there, though, who try to stop him. Some have lost their lives protecting others.” The though of Drek’s family being among those others was prominent in her mind. “They’re doing what they can to help fight the battle, to help keep Zarkon from truly winning. And it’s because of efforts of those Galra that Voltron isn’t controlled by Zarkon, it’s controlled by us.”

“I’m not asking you to forget the past and accept them with open arms. But I want you to try and put the past behind you, let it help you grow so you can be stronger, too. Learn to accept the fact that there are more allies, many in unlikely places. And step up.” The green paladin continued on. She didn’t notice it, but tears started streaming down her face. “We can’t protect the universe alone. We need all the help we can get… but we can’t have our allies distrusting each other, either. So please… understand your past and former oppression… but also look to the future and understand that there are some who only want to help and mean no harm.”

The Puigian leader listened to Pidge and felt downcast. He looked to see some of his own people having listened. Pidge only wanted them to try and make an effort; she didn’t want them to forget, never, but she wanted them to understand and grow. He then reached out and gently wiped the tears from the paladin’s cheek.

“Thank you.” he said kindly. “We cannot forget our past… but… we can learn from it. And we will. And we’ll also learn from this day. Thank you for speaking your mind. And your heart.” He looked to his people, seeing them nod and smile, accepting this. “If the Blade of Marmora will forgive us for our behaviours, we will gladly work alongside them as well as the rest of Voltron to help keep not only our planet safe, but many others.” He moved his hand to offer it to Pidge. She may not have been the leader, but she did stand up for all parts of the team.

Pidge smiled and took his hand, giving it a firm shake. “It’ll be up to them to forgive, but I’m glad you’re willing to make an effort to grow from this.”

-+-+-+-

“Kullo, you are what we call a _ladies’ man_.” Lance sighed at the end of the quintant and after they left Puig.

“No, I think it’d just my fur that they like.” Kullo chuckled, his ears twitching. “And my kindness. Pidge was right, they did like me once they got to know me.”

“Dude, they adored you!” Lance chuckled. “Though now that I think of it… how soft is your fur?” Kullo moved to sit on the floor in front of Lance as they were on the sofa sections in the common room. Though it was short, Lance was still able to brush his fingers through the thicker, darker mess of fur. “Holy crow, that is soft.” He then got the goofiest grin when Kullo made a content purr-like noise. He didn’t hear the Galra purr often, mainly Kolivan or Antok when comforting them as children, especially Matt, but hearing Kullo, he couldn’t help but find that adorable. “You’re like a giant purple space cat and that is honestly cute.”

Shiro smiled as he watched Lance with Kullo. It was always good to see everyone getting along. He then sighed. Something was weighing on his mind.

“Shiro?” Keith asked. “What’s wrong?”

“I was thinking about what Pidge said.”

“Huh?” Pidge perked up from resting her head on Hunk’s lap. “Did I say something wrong back on Puig?”

“No. But it did get me thinking.” Shiro stated. “We do need to step up. We’re doing well now, freeing planets, making friends and allies… but we’re going slow. Zarkon is still going strong.” He looked to the group there; the Alteans and adult members of the Blade of Marmora were all on the bridge, leaving the paladins, Matt, and the kits in the common room. “We need to prepare to fight Zarkon and put a stop to him once and for all. Only then can we actually free the other planets without as much of a threat or risk of them being reconquered.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know Puig wasn't until season three in canon, but Raising Paladins changes things around.   
> Also, Lance and Drek being competitive is a fun thing that I love in this AU.  
> Well! Enjoy!


	42. Planning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As much as Kolivan despises the idea, he knows they need to hit Zarkon at his command center. But before they can act upon it, they have to come up with a plan.

“Absolutely not!” Kolivan starting a morning with that usually meant the kids he looked after were up to something. In this case, the paladins had made it clear that they needed to prepare for the fight against Voltron.

“Kolivan, we need to be ready and put a stop to Zarkon as soon as possible.” Shiro stated for the umpteenth time. “If we keep going at a leisurely pace as we have been, we won’t make progress. We need to step it up.”

“This is too risky.” Kolivan reminded. “This isn’t some planet you’re liberating, this is Zarkon’s entire fucking ship!”

“Holy crow, he just said...” Lance squeaked while Hunk covered his mouth.

“Whoa, Kolivan’s mad.” Matt almost couldn’t believe that Kolivan said that specific word.

“We know.” Shiro maintained his cool. “I’m not saying we should just jump right in and attack his ship, we’re not that dumb and reckless, but we do need to start planning.”

Kolivan grumbled as he sat down in one of the chairs, thankful for being in the dining hall when this was brought up. He had been sitting prior, but in his frustration at the suggestion, he stood up. He rubbed the space between his eyes. “It won’t be easy.” he admitted.

“We figured that much already.” Shiro nodded in response. “But we’re not alone… we’ve got allies and we’ve got the team.”

Kolivan eyed the black paladin. He then watched the others for a moment. “And you’re all in agreement?” he asked.

“Even those of us who aren’t paladins.” Matt spoke up.

Kolivan let out a sigh. He knew this was a dangerous mission, there were so many risks, but he also understood why they couldn’t afford to wait and take their time. “We need to have a plan first and know what we’re doing before we do anything.” he reminded. “We’re in a lull now; with no sightings of Zarkon’s ship or Sendak, we have some time to work on that.”

“Then,” Allura stated, “let’s get on to that.”

“I’ll get more snacks.” Hunk stated. “Eating always pairs well with thinking.”

With snacks set out and the group brainstorming, they found themselves mostly stumped. The best the group had was the fact that there were Marmora agents throughout the empire, some even on Zarkon’s ship. They needed more than that, though. They needed to not only know the most pivotal points of Zarkon’s ship and where to strike, but how to weaken it further. They also had to make sure other planets weren’t caught up in the fight and that Zarkon couldn’t pin them down.

“Ugh, can’t we just use a wormhole and shove him to some other part of the universe that’s practically empty?” Lance inquired. “You know, like isolate him from his other battleships?”

“Hmm, that’s not a bad idea, but it would be a wee bit tricky.” Coran admitted.

“Wait, Lance had an actual idea?” Matt asked, looking stunned.

“Oh, it runs in the family.” Drek muttered, thinking of Pidge being stunned whenever he had a good idea.

“Indeed.” Coran nodded. “Or at least the start of one. While it would be difficult, it wouldn’t be impossible. As you know, especially our youngest trio from their firsthand experiences,” he motioned to Pidge, Drek, and Kullo, “the Olkari are skilled engineers. With their capabilities, some old blueprints, and my knowledge, we should be able to build a teludav.”

“We’d need a new one?” Keith asked. “What’s wrong with the castle’s?”

“It wouldn’t be large enough; we can get the castle through, but Zarkon’s ship is much larger than it.” Coran explained as he messed with his mustache. “There’s just one issue with that; we would have to obtain enough scaultrite for it.,”

“Would that be another mall trip or...” Hunk looked a bit hopeful.

“Good heavens, you probably wouldn’t find enough in a hundred shops!” Coran exclaimed. “No, with this, we’d have to get it from a dangerous location. From the belly of a Weblum.”

“A… Weblum… oh, you mentioned that to me when we got a crystal from the Balmera.” Hunk said. “What’s that again?”

“A Weblum is a massive worm that travels across millions of lightyears, its diet consists entirely of dead planets.” Kullo chimed in, that bit of knowledge being in his brain. “It’s believed that they use the leftover quintessence from the celestial bodies they consume is converted and eventually becoming the foundations for new solar systems.” He smiled as he went through the information he had in him. “Let’s see… they’re covered in a hard exoskeleton, protecting themselves from would-be attackers that include, but not limited to, pirates, thrill seekers, and other deep space predators. They are neither hostile nor docile in nature and in most cases, they don’t even notice when people are near.”

“Ah, another brilliant display of this young man studying up.” Coran declared. “To get the necessary amount of scaultrite, a team will have to go inside. Thankfully I’ve got informative videos on how to do that and what to do to get what is needed.”

“A teludav that big, though, Zarkon would see it with ease.” Allura reminded. “I mean, we could try cloaking it, Pidge applied that to the green lion, but...”

“I could try.” Pidge shrugged. “But it’s one thing applying it to a vehicle and that’s only for thirty ticks. To a whole teludave and for however long?” She wasn’t sure on the matter.

“What about Slav?” Antok questioned.

“Imprisoned in Beta Traz.” Haxus responded.

“Do they seriously have a prison called _Beta Traz_?” Lance whispered to Hunk.

“I have a bad feeling it’s as impossible to escape as Alcatraz.” Hunk whimpered.

“Who is Slav?” Shiro asked.

“A reclusive genius.” Haxus responded. “Before his imprisonment, he aided the Blade of Marmora with many things, especially hiding the bases. Odds are, they’re trying to get his designs and ideas from him.”

“Hmm… we might be able to do something if he’s able to help us.” Shiro stated.

“Getting Slav would be one thing,” Kolivan stated, “but we have a bigger issue. Zarkon’s ship. We won’t be able to keep it in place long enough for the teludav to be used on it or for Voltron to attack.” He sighed. “And even if we could, the moment the teludav is visible and he is through, if we’re not careful, the other battleships would follow through.”

The others let out mutual grumbles of dismay. That was not what they expected to hear, but no one could really deny it. Kolivan had a good point.

“Too bad it’s not like camp when Ku and Pidge shut the whole base down with a virus.” Drek mused, looking bored as he poked at the treat in front of him.

“Pidge, it really is the end of the universe, isn’t it?” Kullo asked, grinning brightly.

“Drek, that’s perfect!” Pidge hugged her friend.

“I see what he meant.” Lance deadpanned, referencing his comment about Matt making a similar remark.

“Um… wait… what?” Drek looked to his friends. “Oh c’mon! This is Zarkon’s ship we’re talking about! Even if we can get a virus uploaded into it, his crew and the computers will eliminate it!”

“They shut down the camp’s base?” Krolia asked.

“The second deca-phoeb in going.” Haxus nodded. “Brondak was not pleased.”

“In theory, it shouldn’t be too hard, but it’d take time and we’d need certain parts to recreate and even strengthen the virus.” Kullo informed not only Drek, but the others as well. “Pidge and I should be able to get what we need at a trash nebula.”

“Trash nebula?” Lance asked. “Like… a space junkyard?”

“Pretty much. They’re regions of space with slight gravitational pulls that keep old junk, mainly destroyed tech and ships, in together as much as possible.” Pidge commented. “Some decommissioned ships reside there, too. While most are stripped of vital tech that could be used against the empire, there are some rare, nearly full ships that are damaged beyond repair that wind up there and even if not, the basic tech is all Ku and I need to get into the system. That plus possible intel from the Blade...”

“We have plenty to share.” Kolivan assured.

“The only downside, though,” Pidge admitted, “is that we would need someone on the inside to help coordinate. Fully transferring the virus over to Zarkon’s ship without someone to accept it or even shut down part of the computers to properly upload the virus, it could risk not working.”

“With agents on Zarkon’s ship, that should be no problem.” Kolivan nodded.

“Good.” Shiro looked to Pidge. “How soon could you and Kullo make the virus? In a week?”

The two smirked mischievously. Even cute and fuzzy Kullo looked a little sinister as he smirked. “Oh, you doubt us that much?” he asked.

“We made one that shut down an entire training facility for several vargas within a varga by screwing around.” Pidge stated. “Three quintants is all we need.”

“It may not last for vargas, but it should last about half a varga and keep the ship shut down and even infect the nearby battleships since the ones in the area are in connection to the main ship.” Kullo added.

“Half a varga is better than nothing and is probably all the time we need.” Shiro nodded. “Then we need to know who is doing what part...”

“Well, for power with the teludav, we’ll need another crystal from a Balmera; I’ll get that myself.” Allura assured. Being the one who could heal the Balmera when collecting a crystal, she was the ideal choice and no one argued with that. “And Coran...”

“I’ll need to be on Olkarion to help with the building of the teludav.” Coran finished. “Pidge and Kullo would undoubtedly be on their virus mission. As for Beta Traz and the Weblum...”

“Lance and I can handle Beta Traz; it’s not our first time sneaking in and out of some-”

“Dude!” Lance looked to Shiro as he trailed off. Glaring at the kids, Kolivan and Krolia stood with their arms crossed.

“Shiro, my main man… that was just...” Matt hit his head to the table.

“Sneaking out? And you make it a habit?” Krolia asked. Her glare swiveled to her own son, Keith looking like he just wanted to disappear.

“Ground them when this is done, we have work ahead of us now.” Antok, surprisingly not stunned by what they learned, stated. “Anyway, with Beta Traz, you’d probably need someone who is Galran to aid you.”

Haxus sighed. He would much rather go with Pidge, keep an eye on her and make sure she was fine, but he felt he was the best choice to aid the group retrieving Slav. “I’ll go with them on that one. While Beta Traz is a tricky place, we should be able to manage.”

“So uh… what about the Weblum?” Hunk asked, putting his hand up.

“Don’t worry, I’ll dig up the instructional videos for those going to watch on the way to one.” Coran declared. “Though tricky and intimidating, it’s actually easy once you’re informed and understand the Weblum’s rather direct and fairly simple digestive tract.” He smiled. “In fact, Hunk, Keith, you two should be able to do well since you two specialize in two different combat methods.”

“Great...” Keith sighed.

“Aw man...” Hunk whined.

“We all have to do our parts in preparing for the battle.” Allura stated. “Besides, I’m sure it won’t be that bad.”

“You do recall Kullo explaining what a Weblum is and Coran even telling us we’d have to get the material from its digestive tract, right?” Hunk asked. “This sucks...”

“We need to do what we can.” Shiro reminded. He then looked to Matt. “Matt, you’ll go with Allura to the Balmera; you can contact our allies on the way, give them the plan and see if they’ll be able to aid us.” After Matt confirmed that, despite wanting to stay with Pidge, Shiro turned his attention toward Coran. “Coran, do you think along with the teludav, you and the Olkari could design fighter ships to help out?”

“It shouldn’t be too hard; that’s easy stuff compared to a teludav.” Coran admitted. “I don’t know how many we can make, a dozen or so before the battle, but that’s better than none.”

“I’ll see what resources or how else the Blade of Marmora can aid in this when I contact some of the agents.” Kolivan stated.

Shiro nodded. “This is it, guys. This is the start to putting an end to Zarkon.” he told them. “Let’s spend the rest of the day preparing and getting our rest; tomorrow, we set out on our missions.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of my favourite things is the occasional parallels between Lance and Drek. Gotta love the blue boys.


	43. Rebels

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Checking out an abandoned ship for technology, Drek's main worries are if the ship is haunted. Krolia is quick to realize that she shouldn't let her guard down.

“So, again… why did we need a babysitter?” Pidge asked, looking back at Krolia as she flew the green lion to the best trash nebula she and Kullo could think of hitting for what they needed in order to create their virus. “I get that we’re still kits, but it’s just a simple mission.”

“Don’t think of it as babysitting.” Krolia waved it off. “Think of it more as the four of us having time to bond and get to know each other.”

“Papa begged you to go with us to make sure we were safe, didn’t him?” Pidge smirked a bit.

“Him and Matt.” Krolia couldn’t help but chuckle. “Besides, we don’t know when and where trouble will find us.”

“Fair enough.” Pidge nodded. “Anyway, it doesn’t look like we’re too much further from our destination. We should be seeing stray debris soon.”

“So, any particular reason why this specific nebula?” Krolia asked. “Unless things have changed in the past twenty or so years, there are plenty of nebulas and one that was actually closer to Olkarion; we could have gone with Coran there and then head to the nebula.”

“You make a good point, but this one is actually one Ku and I know of.” Pidge explained.

“See, Pidge and I spent a lot time working with tech and studying about different ships and commanders. It was also the nearest one to camp.” Kullo explained, letting Pidge focus on flying. “So, tech from camp that got destroy, if it couldn’t be scrapped and reused, it wound up at that nebula. Plus, there are some ships from within the past century, one that’s actually about a decade, which is pretty good. It was badly damaged and if we’re lucky, part of the tech would still be intact for use to access and utilize.” He then grinned brightly. “Plus! We may even be able to find the original tech with our virus on it. That would make it easier in creating the one for Zarkon’s ship!”

Krolia smiled. Though a group of kits, they really had things planned out. “And if it can’t be found?”

“We can still make something, that’s no issue on our part.” Pidge explained. “But it would cut down on time and coding if we found it.” She then looked ahead and smiled. “Oooh! It’s so beautiful!” she declared, seeing the mess of metal, satellites, and broken down ships amid various bits of junk clumped together. It was a disaster zone and perhaps an accident waiting to happen.

“It’s… junk.” Drek commented, not sharing the same enthusiasm.

“Well, on Earth, they say that _one man’s trash is another man’s treasure_.” Krolia commented.

Pidge landed the green lion and got situated. “Okay, so our goals are suitable Galra tech to work with and, if possible, the original tech that had our virus. A few vargas of searching should be sufficient.” She grabbed Drek by the ear, making him yelp. “And I mean for all of us in searching.”

“Okay, okay, I’ll help!” Drek whined, pulling his ear free. “This place is such a mess, though… I don’t even know where to begin.”

“Probably there.” Kullo pointed out and toward a ship that had seen better days. It looked damaged and broken up, but a few larger pieces were in decent condition.

Drek’s ears went down. “Oh great… an old, abandoned ship...”

“Don’t worry, it’s not haunted.” Pidge assured as she got ready to leave the lion. She stepped out with the others and made their way across the junk and discarded metal.

“You don’t know that for sure! It could be haunted!” Drek whined. “You know the stories that Commander Veluk would tell us!”

“Veluk is still telling ghost tales?” Krolia couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “He was always good at telling stories, but I can assure you, I’ve seen enough abandoned ships, not one was ever haunted.” Drek was still nervous as he whined.

Pidge smiled when she entered a larger segment of the ship. While it had been mostly gutted out, it was still together to go through as well as some pieces remaining. “I need to figure out where the command station would be on here. That would be the first place to look for usable tech.”

“Okay, so how do we search? I can’t tell if this section was closer to the bow or the stern.” Drek asked.

“Way ahead of you.” Pidge worked with the tech on her armor. “We were able to set up a program to help detect Galra tech, making it easier to find some things. This will also help in finding our virus if it’s here.”

“It’s not perfect, it’d take some tweaking over time, but for now, it should be doable.” Kullo added.

“You two really do work quick and come up with good ideas.” Krolia was impressed by the two children.

“They’re the biggest reasons why our group has some of the best records with mission simulations.” Drek grinned brightly, proud of his best friends.

Using the tech to guide them, Pidge and Kullo searched for what they needed. They found themselves deeper in the ship, thankful for it being broken up in some areas and making for quick escapes if necessary. They eventually found themselves in the command center of it.

“The computers have no power, to no surprise, but this one here looks like it will still function and we can use it to work with the virus more.” Kullo stated, standing at one station to the side.

“So what even happened to this ship?” Drek asked. “Meteor storm?”

“Well, according to stories some of the commanders would tell, it was attacked by rebels.” Pidge commented. “It was commanded by Commander Zuvriak. And she led it and her crew through battle.”

“So… everyone...” Drek wasn’t exactly afraid of death, it was a part of life, but when it meant the possibility of ghosts, he was on edge.

Pidge shook her head. “There were few casualties. The biological crew, she ordered to flee. Though it wasn’t the Galra way, she told them that if they fled, they would live and fight again according to her then-lieutenant. She then took the ship and, with the sentries on board, steered it into the rebel fleet, taking them out by sacrificing herself and her ship. I think that was a couple decades ago.”

“Okay, I understand now that most of the empire is… bad but… that’s actually kinda cool. And amazing that she protected her crew, too, and made sure they would live so they could fight again.” Drek admitted. “And it was brought here to rest?”

“The battle was near here, I think; I don’t know if the ship was brought over or if it just eventually drifted, though.” Pidge shrugged her shoulders. She then stopped. “Hmm?”

“Pidge? What’s up?” Kullo inquired.

“I thought I saw something.”

“Pidge!” Drek hissed.

“I’m being serious.” Pidge grumbled. “And I don’t think it’s a ghost, so don’t get your tail in a twist.” Drek rolled his eyes and grumbled about him not being the one with a tail. Pidge ignored him and went toward an opening in the ship, certain that the door led to another corridor. She stopped when there was a set of what appeared to be glowing eyes. Then another. A few more joined in.

“Stay back!” Krolia was quick to get over to Pidge and pull her back before shielding her. She readied her blade for an attack, but stopped and stared past her mask as the glowing drew near and showed not to be eyes at all. They were marks on small, fuzzy looking creatures in varying colours. “Huh?”

“Awww!” Pidge cooed, leaning out from behind the Blade. She got around her and investigated the multi-legged, wide eyed, fuzzy creatures that made little squeaks as they moved about. “They’re so cute! Look at ‘em!” She held her hands out and gently took hold of a yellow one, giving it a gentle squeeze. The noise it made sounded rather pleasant. More swarmed her, nuzzling into the paladin. “Aw, and they’re friendly, too.”

“They are cute! I bet these little guys turned the ship into their home out here.” Kullo chuckled. “Drek?” He looked around to see Drek hiding behind a doorway. “Oh, c’mon, they aren’t ghosts. They’re fuzzy little guys that squeak.”

“Not ghosts?” Drek asked. He reentered the room and went over, investigating what the group had found. “They are… kinda cute, I guess.” He scowled when one rammed into his helmet. “Hello.”

Krolia let out a sigh of relief. Harmless balls of fluff. That was fine. Though her relief was soon shattered as she went on high alert. She shoved Kullo out of the way in time for something, someone, to drop down from a vent. Dammit. She mentally kicked herself for not paying attention as well as she felt she should have. She got the mental kick, the person who dropped in got a literal kick to the abdomen.

From the sides of the assailant's helmet, they looked to have feathered ears. While Galrans differed and some were mixed, Krolia had a feeling this person was not Galran and certain probably wasn’t part of the empire. A scavenger, maybe? Either way, they didn’t back down and went at the Blade, attacking her.

“We’re not here to fight!” Krolia called out.

“Says someone traveling with two Galra!” the other, a female, replied.

Galra. She assumed them to be part of the empire. “They’re just kits; they have nothing to do with the empire!” Krolia responded. She dodged an attack. She didn’t know who this alien was or what her standing was, but she knew she had to stop the fight before someone got hurt. “I’m part of the Blade of Marmora!” she dared to say, hoping it meant something.

“Te-Osh! Stop!”

A new voice. A familiar voice. She had dropped down from the same vent and got the alien she called Te-Osh to cease fighting. She had on a mask, obscuring her face, but Krolia didn’t need to see it anyway. The voice was enough.

“Wait a tick… Colleen?” Krolia asked, perking up.

“That voice… Krolia.” The other shifted. “It… it really is you.”

-+-+-+-

No one expected there to be a hidden base within the trash nebula. More than that, it was a rebel base. When the others were detected and at least two were recognized as Galra, the rebels were on guard and ready to defend themselves and their base. What the rebels didn’t expect was for one of their own to recognize one of the others and what she was.

When back in the base, helmets were removed, even Colleen’s. Krolia’s eyes looked sad as she reached out and traced a finger down one of the scars upon her face. “Oh Colleen...”

“It’s not the worst of them.” Colleen admitted, doing her best to chuckle, though it came out rather forced. “It’s… been a long time. Almost sixteen years, right?” She smiled and hugged Krolia. “I missed you so much… I missed all of you.”

“How did you escape? When did you escape?” Krolia didn’t went to let go of her friend. “Why didn’t you contact the blades?”

“It… I’ve been out for some years but… how doesn’t matter right now.” Colleen pulled away. “As for why I didn’t get in tough, the Blade is hard to find, you know. And I didn’t want to risk being trailed by the empire to them anyway. And before you ask, Earth is so far away… I couldn’t make the journey alone safely and the others, the rebels, were busy. I decided to stay with them, help out… try to find any other humans...”

“Did you?” Krolia asked.

“Not yet. But… I know some won’t be able to return home.” Colleen’s heart felt heavy admitting that. She then looked over to where the kits were, seeing them on edge and trying to settle down. More than that, she saw Pidge. The small Earthling who looked so much like the rebel’s son. “Katie?” she asked, her eyes lighting up. “It’s… it’s really you, Katie.”

“It’s really her.” Krolia smiled as she looked over. “Pidge, I’d like you to meet someone. This is Colleen. Your mother.”

Pidge stared for a moment. Her mom. She already recognized her based on the photos Kolivan had brought with him from Earth to show. This woman was her mother.

And Pidge couldn’t bring herself to open up or go to her. She hid a bit behind Drek, even looking away. She had never met her before. She didn’t hold the same bond or hopes that Matt would have had.

“Pidge...”

Colleen put a hand on Krolia’s shoulder to stop her before the Galran could try and get Pidge to go over to them. “It’s been a long time… she wouldn’t have any memories.” she reminded. “Give her time.” As much as Colleen wanted to just rush over and hug Pidge, tell her how much she missed her, how much she dreamed of the day they would meet, praying that she would be say, she didn’t want to crowd the girl and scare her. She didn’t want to ruin the already delicate, nearly non-existent bond they had.

“Pidge, right? That’s what Krolia just called you.” Colleen spoke up, staying where she was. “It’s nice to meet you finally. And these two?” She didn’t show any skepticism about Drek and Kullo, just simple curiosity in who they were.

Drek looked to Pidge before nudging her over to Kullo. He then held out his hand that Colleen took when she carefully approached. “I’m Drek. That’s Kullo.” Kullo nodded in response. “We’re Pidge’s best friends.”

“Best friends, training buddies from camp, and now pretty much her brothers, especially since Matt’s taken it upon himself to pretty much adopt them as his brothers.” Krolia commented.

“Matt?” Colleen was shocked. “He’s out here, too?”

“A little busy with another task, but yeah.” Krolia nodded. “There’s a lot to catch up on.”

“Er… you can do that while we continue our mission.” Kullo suggested. “It’ll be fine; it won’t take much on our end.” Without anyone giving permission, he rushed out of the base with Pidge. Drek gave a bit of a forced grin before following them.

“I’m sorry… this was probably not the reunion you were hoping for.” Krolia stated.

“It’s better than the one I had nightmares about.” Colleen smiled softly. “I’ll take it. And I’ll give her time; maybe one day she’ll decide to speak with me or ask questions. Until then, she needs to come to terms with what she just found out.” Indeed, she still wanted to hug her daughter. But for the time being, she was content in just seeing her alive and well. “Now, what about Matt? And the other kids? How is everyone and what did I miss?”

“A lot.” Krolia responded. “There’s so much to catch you up on.”


	44. Prepare for Battle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Voltron and the team's allies make their final preparations for the battle against Zarkon.   
> Colleen hopes to connect a bit with her long lost daughter on that final night.

“Wow. We actually found it.” Drek was amazed that they could locate the original virus Pidge and Kullo had made back at camp. “Does this mean you guys are set to make the virus to use against Zarkon’s ship?” He looked to where Pidge was sitting, messing with one of the fuzzy space caterpillars. “Pidge?”

“I think she’s reacting to having met her mom...” Kullo whispered.

“Yeah… I think so, too.”

The two went to where Pidge was. She simply sat there, the caterpillars drifting about, bumping into her, some even nuzzling the girl. She didn’t respond much; she just sat where with the caterpillars, one in her hands and being gently squished. Thankfully the creature didn’t seem to mind.

“Pidge… we found all that we need.” Kullo spoke softly as he sat next to his friend.

“Huh? Already?” Pidge perked up, finally hearing him.

“Pidge… is something wrong?” Kullo asked.

“We think it’s about your mom but...” Drek scooted in on the other side of Pidge. “You know… I think she’s really happy to meet you.”

“Yeah but…” Pidge sighed. “I don’t know how I feel about this. I mean… I knew I had a mom… I was taken away from her… and now...” She hugged the caterpillar closer. “And I feel bad about not welcoming her with open arms but...”

“Then give it time.” Kullo responded. “Look, she’s your mom, yeah, but she’s also a stranger. And it’s not like you completely shunned and dismissed her. You just met her… and I’m sure she understands that you need time to adjust.”

“You really think so?” Pidge asked. “What if I hurt her feelings? I’m not ready to open up to her but… I don’t want to hurt her...”

Nearby, another rebel was waiting around. She went out to check on the trio, make sure they were okay. She stopped to listen to them, a smile gracing her face. “If I know Colleen, which I do,” she spoke up, causing the other to turn and look to her, seeing her canine-like face past her visor, “then her feelings are fine. If anything, she’s relieved at this reunion.” She went to the group and sat down next to Kullo. “I’m Olia.”

“What do you mean she’s relieved?” Drek asked.

“Well… Colleen’s had nightmares. She was certain Pidge would be alive but...” Olia sighed. “She feared her daughter would truly be a part of the empire. Dark. Corrupt. A soldier who is loyal through and through.” The kits looked nervous. It was almost that way, at least for two of them. “But here you are. Reunited with the other paladins, fighting together to help out.” She smiled. “She’s happy that you’ve decided on your own path. Krolia explained a lot of what happened, but the end result is that you chose your place in the universe in the end. All three of you did.”

None of the kids could deny that. Though the past still felt like it was haunting them, they made their choices for what they were sure was the greater good.

“How’s it going out here?” Krolia approached the group, checking up on them.

“Mission accomplished.” Drek assured.

“Just need to reconfigure the original virus to make it ideal for using against Zarkon.” Kullo added.

“Which leaves the others’ parts of the jobs to be completed.” Pidge finished up.

“Then for now, we’ll head back to Olkarion to wait for the others.” Krolia stated. “And we’re not going alone.” She looked to see Te-Osh and Colleen not far behind. “They’ve agreed to assist us in this battle against Zarkon.”

“Good, because, no offense to our friends, we’ll need all the help we can get.” Drek commented.

-+-+-+-

Matt was shocked. When he got back to Olkarion with Allura, he never expected more rebels, this being an organized group of their own, to join on in the mission, but more than there, he never foresaw who one of the rebels would be. Krolia decided against telling those who went to the Balmera about Colleen, wanting Matt to be surprised.

“Mom… Mom!” Matt ran over and was quick to hug his mother, not even fighting to keep the tears from falling. “It’s you. It’s really you.”

“I’m here, Matt. Oh god, I missed you so much.” Colleen was happy to hold her son. She then pulled away a bit, putting her hands on his face. “Look at you. You’ve grown so much.”

Matt smiled brightly. “Kolivan did a good job raising me. As did the others.” he reminded. He then gently raised a hand, touching one of the scars on his mother’s face. He made a small noise.

“Don’t worry about these, sweetie.” Colleen assured. “To finally see you and Pidge again, I’m glad I could endure these and I would gladly endure more.” She leaned in and kissed her son’s forehead. “I’m glad we got to meet again.”

“As am I.” Matt smiled softly. “But… Pidge. You met her? How’d she respond? I bet she’s happy!” Colleen’s expression wasn’t as exuberant as Matt’s. “She’s… not happy?”

“She’s coming to terms.”

“I’ll go talk to her then.”

Matt tried to take off, but Colleen stopped him by grabbing his arm. “Honey, don’t.” She let out a sigh. “She needs time. No one should try to force her to accept this when she’s not ready.”

“But you’re our mother… her mother.”

“I know that. She knows that, too.” Colleen smiled.

“I went a long time without you. But I happily welcomed you. But Pidge...”

“Pidge never knew me, you did. I’m a stranger to her. To you, I’m a long lost family member.” Collen reminded. “Honey, don’t worry. Pidge will come to terms when she’s ready. And who knows, maybe Drek and Kullo will warm up to me.”

“You’ve met them, too?” Matt smiled. “They’re sweet. I’m glad they came back with Pidge when we wound up at another base. I got a sister from this. And two brothers.”

“I’m glad you feel that way. Because if they’re willing, I’m more than happy to bring them into the family. The boys need love, too. And Drek...” Colleen’s eyes were soft. “I miss Ryl so much. We were good friends, like family. With that in mind, Drek is family, too. And Kullo, he’s just too sweet to not want to have in the family.” She had been told plenty by Krolia to know that Drek and Ryl were related and Kullo was kind, nothing like much of the empire.

“Colleen, Matt,” Kolivan went up to the mother and son, “something’s come up with our plans.”

“Good or bad?” Colleen inquired.

“We’re not sure yet; Pidge and Kullo haven’t disclosed that yet.” Kolivan responded. Pidge and Kullo. That most likely meant that something came up with the virus. The Holts hoped that it wasn’t bad. They went to meet up, some of the rebels and Olkari even there and awaiting the news.

“Okay,” Pidge started up, “good news is, the virus will be ready on time.”

“And the bad news?” Shiro inquired.

“It won’t matter how long we work on it… we won’t be able to upload it to any tech and to another blade on the ship for them to put in… it’s too much data and risky… anything could go wrong with that route.” Pidge pointed out. “Someone would have to go in the ship with the virus on a device, Kullo was able to set it up with a drone for the transfer, and upload it there.”

Kolivan opened his mouth, the Marmora leader ready to call the mission off. With that, it was too risky. But Krolia decided otherwise. “Okay. I’ll do it.”

“Wait, what?” Keith looked over, resembling a dear in headlights. “Mom! That’s a dangerous mission. Going into Zarkon’s ship…”

“Before it’s confirmed, you’re absolutely sure of things?” Krolia ignored her son. “We can’t transfer it to an agent on board and they do it? Even if it takes longer...”

“We’ve run the numbers… it’s not gonna happen. Zarkon’s ship is a bit more secure and trickier to work with than a standard base, even one for training kits like us.” Kullo responded. “Plus, we’ve got another issue.” He motioned to Haxus.

“When we got into touch with the agents on Zarkon’s ship, we were met with an issue. While they weren’t found out yet, Zarkon is aware that there are spies among his soldiers.” Haxus responded. “Ulaz and Thace are laying low, but… the incident when we went to the ship to retrieve Princess Allura has made Zarkon more aware and a little more cautious than usual.”

“Then doing this task now is suicide.” Kolivan spoke up.

“But we can’t back down. We’ve come too far with this.” Shiro reminded. “And Zarkon knowing that there are spies doesn’t fully affect our plan. What little it does, Pidge and Kullo have already found another snag it would coincide with, but they’ve come up with an alternative.”

Kolivan sighed. “True… we have come too far...” Even he couldn’t deny that. “Krolia, are you certain you can get in?”

“Hmm… Pidge, we can have a pod with cloaking applied so I can get in unseen?” Krolia looked over.

“Easy work, yeah.”

“Then I can do this.” she confirmed. “We just need a diversion to help me get in.”

“We can easily do that then.” Shiro stated. “We’ll be out there fighting to keep Zarkon in place for the Teludav.”

“And you have part of the rebel force to help, too.” Te-Osh informed. Part of her forces would be with Voltron, the other part waiting in the Yggiz Galaxy where the battle would be finished up and Zarkon and his shop would be taken down. “So much is bound to happen, they won’t register the pods energy signature.”

Allura looked to everyone there, knowing there were many more ready. Ships made by the Olkari as well as the rebels and their ships, they had a small army ready to put an end to Zarkon’s reign. Yes, there would still be work to follow up with afterwards, but the empire would slowly crumble. “This is it, everyone. This is the final step. Soon, we will be seeing the end of the empire.” she told them. “It pains me to say this, we are at war and not everyone may make it. Faces we know… we love… we may never see them again.” She closed her eyes, envisioning the last time she had ever seen her father. “But we will not give up. We will not stand down.” She opened her eyes. “We will bring forth the beginning of the end!”

The others applauded her, cheering for her. Yes, they knew they could die in this, but they felt it was better to die fighting for a just cause than to submit and be killed anyway.

“We depart tomorrow. Ensure you’re ready, prepared for battle.” Allura continued. “Take this time to rest. Contact your loved ones.” She smiled. “I am sure of it. We will come out of this victoriously.”

The group broke up for the time being, getting their affairs in order and for their ships to be ready. During that, Pidge and Kullo worked on the pod, getting it ready for Krolia. After Pidge finished up, she noticed that they were being watched. Looking over, she saw Colleen there.

“Pidge?” Drek nudged her. “Why don’t you at least go over and talk to her?”

“Yeah.” Pidge nodded. She got up and went over to Colleen. “It’s… going to be busy tomorrow...”

“Indeed.” Colleen stated. She went over and looked at one of the pods. “These are amazing ships. I remember the first time I saw a ship that wasn’t of Earth origin. I was amazed. Of course, Sam was even more excited. I thought he was going to pass out from pure joy alone.” She ran her hand over it. She then looked to the one Pidge had been working with. She knew she needed to let Pidge take her time to come to terms with them meeting, but she also wanted to get to know her daughter more. That was when the idea hit her.

“So, the one for Kro to use.” Colleen went over to it, greeting the boys as she approached. “How’s this cloaking work?”

Pidge grinned when Colleen showed interest in her work. “It’s Altean tech that I got from reverse engineering the invisible maze on the training deck! I mean, it doesn’t last too long, but long enough!”

Drek and Kullo smiled. It wasn’t the perfect reunion many had probably hoped for, but it was going well. They stuck around, even talking with the Earthling rebel, eventually straying from talking about the pod and going over the shenanigans they had gotten into while training. For a final night before the battle against Zarkon, they spent it well and with plenty of laughter.


	45. The Battle Begins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Team Voltron and the rebels begin their battle, hoping to bring an end to Zarkon and his control over the known universe.

“Princess, the other part of the team is in the Yggiz galaxy and ready for when we bring Zarkon to them.” Coran informed.

“Then we best depart soon. We need to get to our positions.” Allura stated.

Pidge went to the green lion, Drek and Kullo joining her; Matt would have, but he decided he would be of more use in the castle, working with its defenses to help fight. Before she entered, she stopped to see Colleen go to one of the rebel ships. She wanted to call out to her, but she didn’t know if she should. If things went well, she could talk afterwards. If not?

“Go on, Pidge.” Drek told her. “We’ve got a minute or two.”

Pidge smiled. “Mom?” she called, stepping away from the lion. Colleen turned and looked in shock before smiling softly. She was ready to cry at being called that by her daughter. The paladin then ran over, jumping at the last foot or two and into her mother’s arms, hugging her. “Be safe out there, okay? Please, Mom… be safe...”

“I’ll do my best, honey.” Colleen stated. She then looked to Drek and Kullo, smiling. She held her arm out, prompting them to join. They were children and if she had any say in it, they would definitely feel a mother’s love. “You three stay strong and be there for each other. Okay?”

“We will.” Kullo assured.

“We’re a team; we’ve got each others’ backs.” Drek smirked.

When they parted, Pidge went to the green lion, finally entering it. Upon Shiro’s command, the lions took off, picking up the massive teludav and getting it through the wormhole Allura created. The rebel ships joining them followed through, too. “Okay,” the green paladin said as Shiro set the bait to lure Zarkon in, “this is about to be a rough ride.”

**“Be on guard, Pidge. You, too, Shiro.”** Allura reminded the two. **“You’ve got Haggar and Zarkon to deal with, too.”**

**“We’ll have to try and be stronger them, then.”** Shiro responded.

“We can do this… we can do this...” Pidge mumbled.

“You’ve got this, Pidge.” Drek put his hand on Pidge’s shoulder. “And we’re right with you.”

“We’ve got your back.” Kullo reminded.

“Glad to have you.” Pidge nodded in confirmation. She waited until Shiro’s signal. When Zarkon’s fleet showed up and Shiro gave the word, they took off, fighting the cruisers and fighter ships.

**“Pidge, track Krolia’s position; give her a clear path!”** Shiro ordered.

“Copy that!” Pidge picked up where Krolia’s pod was, even while it was cloaked. She then went in and made a path. “Krolia, you should be clear!”

**“That I am; thanks, kit.”** Krolia responded. **“I’m going in!”**

**“Good luck, Krolia.”** Allura told her.

“She gets tech part. We get fun part out here.” Pidge smirked a bit. She then veered off, joining the others in the battle.

**“Fun? No offense, but is that the Galra upbringing speaking?”** Lance inquired.

**“More like her chaotic energy.”** Haxus responded.

“I’m not that bad, Papa!”

**“Focus, team; we need to keep Zarkon occupied.”** Shiro reminded the team.

**“Shouldn’t we form Voltron?”** Keith questioned.

**“Not yet; we can’t play that card too soon.”** Shiro informed. **“Wait until the ship is powered down and we have it on the other side of the wormhole.”**

-+-+-+-

Krolia crashed the pod inside the hanger, but she didn’t mind too much; at least she took out a number of sentries and a few fighter ships on the way. She jumped out of the pod, the drone in tow, and tackled the nearest sentry that didn’t get destroyed, stabbing it through with a blade made of luxite. She then took off running, heading through the corridors. “Okay, team, I’m in. Heading down to the lower communications deck.”

**“Stay on guard; we may have Zarkon focused on us, but he may also be prepared for internal conflicts, too.”** Kolivan reminded.

“Right.” Krolia went through the ship, checking the schematics to ensure she was heading in the right direction. She stayed hidden, keeping as undetected as she possibly could. She got to where she needed, seeing that it wasn’t guarded. “Okay, I’m in. Heading to the hub and getting it set up with the virus.”

**“Okay, you need to shut down the system. If the passcodes provided don’t work, you should be able to generate new ones thanks to Kullo’s work on that drone.”** Kolivan informed. **“It should be down for a dobosh, then you can upload the virus.”**

“Got it.” Krolia confirmed as she did just that. As expected, the codes needed to get in had been changed, but they were prepared. “New code is generating.” she reported. “Kullo? You hearing me, kit? You really are amazing with this.”

**“Codes are one of my specialties.”** Kullo giggled. **“And it’s not that hard to find patterns in codes and get new ones generated for different bases.”**

Krolia waited for the code to generate so she could shut the systems down. Something, though, caught her attention. She dodged just in time to avoid a blast sent at her. Turning, she scowled, seeing two druids there. “Crap.”

“So, it was a diversion.” one of the druids spoke up, though with the masks, Krolia couldn’t tell which. That didn’t matter, though; they were both bad news and needed to be eliminated. “But whatever it is you’re planning, don’t think you’ll be successful.”

Krolia quickly drew her blade, ready for the druids when they both went at her. She had trained for many years, even preparing her to take on multiple enemies at once. Druids, though, were tricky and magical. They were bad enough to fight one on one, but two on one? Ouch. The Blade wasn’t backing down. She managed to destroy one.

The other, though, nearly took her off guard as she got rid of the first one. However, someone shot at them, destroying the other druid. This caught Krolia’s attention as she looked over to see two more Galra, one dressed like a lieutenant, the other in the garb of a medical examiner.

“Thace! Ulaz!” she exclaimed, thankful to see her fellow Blades. She ran over to them, checking on Thace, the darker and fur covered Galra looking like he had seen better days. “What happened?”

“I’d been careless and got caught… but that doesn’t matter. I’m fine.” Thace assured. “It looks like you guys are getting into motion.”

“Yeah, and I still need to get this shut down so I can upload the virus.” As much as Krolia would love to stay with Thace, check on him and make sure he was fine, she still had a job to do. She went back to the hub and worked with it, hoping the access codes would come up soon.

“Hopefully it gets done soon. We have company.” Ulaz, who had a blaster he probably stole from a sentry, shot at one of the power crystals above them, making it fall and land in front of the doorway. It kept the soldiers out, but them trapped inside. Or so it appeared. “We can get out through down there.” He motioned down the long shaft beneath them. “But we need to finish the job here...”

“Yeah, just a few ticks…” Krolia bit her lip some. She could hear sounds going on outside in the corridor; the soldiers were trying to get in. “Got it! Shutting down systems.” She smiled as things went according to plan. “And uploading the virus.”

Once the job was done, she, Thace, and Ulaz fled through the shaft. “Kolivan, we’re going to need a fly-by rescue; the pod was destroyed on impact and the other ships are going to be shut down.”

**“Send me the location where I can get you.”** Keith responded instead. **“Red’s the fastest; I can swing in and get out.”**

“Copy that.” Krolia confirmed. “And I’ve got Thace and Ulaz with me.”

**“Got it.”**

-+-+-+-

“You guys try to hurry; we don’t have much time and we need to use the teludav now.” Allura reported. Already the generator used to cloak the teludav gave out; they were exposed. Thankfully, though, Zarkon’s ship and fleet started to power down. She then took her place and put her hands on the two spires. “Okay… let’s do this.” She took in a deep breath and concentrated. She knew this would take a lot of energy, but she had to do this. She had to try.

With the teludav activated, Allura had it brought down onto Zarkon’s ship. She hoped she wasn’t going too quickly, Keith still had to get his mother and the other Blades out. Then Keith gave confirmation that the extraction was a success. Good. She finished bringing the teludav down before getting the castle to go through.

Once she and the others, paladins and rebels alike, were all through, the princess collapsed, Coran quick to check on her.

“Allura!” Coran cried out. “Are you okay? Allura?”

“I’m fine… did… everyone make it… through?” Allura asked.

Coran took in a deep breath. Those still alive did. “We lost a few in battle...” he admitted. “But the others made it. The paladins, too.”

“Then for those we lost, we must continue. We must win.” Allura declared.

**“Coran! How’s Allura?”** Shiro inquired over the comm.

“She’s exhausted, but she’ll be fine.” Coran responded. “Now’s your chance, Paladins!”

**“Right! Okay, team! The battle’s not over yet! Let’s form Voltron!”**


	46. "That's the power of the komar? I hate it."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The paladins and rebels fight the battle against Zarkon and his forces. Not only is it physically taxing, but also mentally. Pidge especially knows this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slight "warning".  
> In this chapter, there is an image further down. While not depicting nudity, it does show the figures. Again, this is not nude art. Think transformation sequence in Sailor Moon. Figures, colourful, perfectly fine.

**“Okay, rebel team, you guys take out the shield generators while Voltron works on the engines.”** Shiro instructed. **“We’ve only got twenty doboshes, so let’s make it count.”**

**“Copy that.”** Te-Osh responded.

**“Okay, Voltron. Form sword!”** he ordered the team. Once they did, they took of, going at the ship and working to destroy, or at leave severely damage, the engines while the rebels focused on the shield generators. While destroying all components was important, if they rendered the shields and basic engines useless, then fighting against Zarkon’s ship, even after it regains power, would be much easier.

-+-+-+-

On Zarkon’s ship, the emperor himself was furious. “What is going on? Get the weapons systems activated immediately!”

“Sir,” a commander responded, “everything is shut down and won’t turn back on.”

“Then restart the crystal core manually! Do whatever it takes to get power back!” the emperor snapped.

“Sire, they will get it back online.” Haggar spoke up. “Until then, the druids and I still hold power. With the komar, we can draw out the quintessence from Voltron and render him lifeless.”

“What? And not try to control the green paladin?” Zarkon’s tone was bitter. “Your idea to sway her again has failed...” He looked away. “No. I will face Voltron myself. Finally, the black lion will be mine once more.”

“Sire, please, reconsider!” Haggar went over, stepping in front of Zarkon’s path. “Doing so will be certain death.”

“Victory or death.” He pushed Haggar out of his way and walked off.

“Please! Your obsession is clouding your judgment!” Haggar called after Zarkon. She then turned to the druids. “We must protect our emperor!” She then readied herself, preparing to use the komar, a device meant to drain the quintessence from planets.

Zarkon went to a lab where scientists were working. “Ready my armor.” he ordered them.

“But my lord,” a scientist spoke up, “it hasn’t been successfully tested. Doing so ca-” The scientist didn’t get the chance to finish their statement as Zarkon grabbed hold of their entire neck in his hand, lifting them off the floor. They struggled as much as possible, but with a subtle flex of the emperor’s fingers, the scientist went limp.

Zarkon dropped the body of the scientist, letting them crumple to the floor. “Did I stutter?” he asked, though it was directed to the other scientists in the room. “Ready my armor.”

“Yes, sire.” another said, rushing to prepare their emperor’s armor.

-+-+-+-

**“Okay, team, the engines are compromised; let’s hit the bridge. Rebels, are you good to hit the weapons system?”** Shiro checked with the other part of the team.

**“We’re on it, Shiro.”** Colleen confirmed.

**“Huh? Guys, what’s that?”** Lance inquired.

“Hmm?” Pidge looked to see a light starting up at the bridge. “Oh quiznak… Guys! We gotta move!” Though she warned them, they didn’t move out of the way in time and were hit with a blast. It had fully consumed Voltron and even the castle, draining both of power.

**“Paladins? Paladins, please? Do you copy?”** It took a few moments, but Allura tried to contact the team.

**“Yeah… we’re here...”** Shiro mumbled.

**“What the hell was that?”** Keith inquired.

“The komar.” Pidge responded. “It’s… designed to drain the… quintessence from planets.” She shook her head, trying to get her senses back in order. “Ku? Drek?”

“Felt that… ugh…” Drek grumbled. “So that’s the power of the komar… I hate it.”

**“You and me both, buddy.”** Lance chimed in.

“How was the komar even used? The ship was shut down.” Kullo pointed out.

“Because it doesn’t run on power like a ship; it’s controlled by Haggar and the druids.” Pidge explained.

“Um… Pidge? I think we’ve got another problem.” Kullo pointed past the windshield to where a massive, armored figure showed up.

**“What exactly is that?”** Hunk whined.

**“That’s got to be Zarkon… right?”** Shiro inquired.

“Definitely Zarkon…” Pidge bit out.

**“Paladins, you must do what you can to stay strong. We’ll try to handle the komar so it can’t be used against you again. Until then...”** Allura trailed off.

**“Right. We’ve got to fight Zarkon now.”** Shiro confirmed.

They got Voltron to move again, ready to fight Zarkon. But before they could, Pidge’s lion started to seize. Inside Green, the paladin herself was struggling, crying out and struggling to move. In her weakened state after they were hit with the komar, Haggar found a way into her mental state and was trying to take control of the girl.

**“What’s going on? The green lion’s seizing.”** Keith pointed out.

**“Pidge? Pidge, do you copy?”** Shiro inquired. **“Drek? Kullo?”**

“I think Haggar is trying to get to Pidge again… she’s not responding.” Kullo reported. He put his arms around his friend. “C’mon, Pidge, you’re stronger than her. Come back to us.”

Pidge let out pained noise. “It… it hurts…” she whimpered.

“You have to fight Haggar. C’mon, Pidge...” Kullo was getting worried.

“Pidge, you fought hard before to try and get away from this. And remember Olkarion… you felt even stronger after Olkrion.” Drek reminded, hoping that would spark something. “Please...”

“Ol...kar...i… on...” Pidge squeezed her eyes shut. She tried to focus on that, but it was hard. She felt Haggar try to press in further, try to take control. Pidge then felt another sensation, one that was more comforting.

Trigel.

When Pidge opened her eyes, she found herself in Green’s consciousness. She felt sore. Tired. Weak. She looked herself over, she saw she was glowing and purple. That didn’t seem good, especially since she was the green paladin. Mumbling, she put her arms around herself. “Everything hurts… I don’t know how to keep Haggar away… I thought I was strong enough… but...”

“You are strong.” Trigel stepped up and knelt before Pidge. Unlike Pidge, she was actually green and glowing. “You’re stronger than you think, especially since you’re not alone. You have the paladins, your brother, your friends, your mother and papa.” She smiled softly. “And you have me.”

“I’m scared...”

“I’d be a little worried if you weren’t.”

“I thought I could keep Haggar from controlling me. But...”

“She’s dealt a great blow unto you.” Trigel gently put her hands to Pidge’s face, cupping it. “She may have been a part of your life, but she does not dictate how you live. This is your life. You are in control.”

Pidge sighed and closed her eyes. She felt like crying. As much as she wanted to believe Trigel, as much as she wanted to push Haggar away, she didn’t feel she could. She felt so tired and heavy, as though she had no strength to return to being herself.

“Allow me to help you, my dear.” Trigel put her forehead to Pidge’s. “Focus. Focus on me. On the paladins. On Green.”

Pidge felt as though a weight was falling away from her. When she opened her eyes again and looked at herself. Green. The purple had washed away from her. She couldn’t see it, but one spot remained around her eye where the scar was. She could, though, feel it.

“You’re strong, Pidge.” Trigel reminded. “Now… be strong for your team and help them.”

-+-+-+-

Shiro grunted when they were attacked by Zarkon. He kept on attacking, using the bayard that should have been Shiro’s, until Voltron was separated, the lions back to being individual. “Paladins, we can’t give up; we need to keep fighting!” he told them.

**“What about Pidge? She’s not responding!”** Keith pointed out.

“Drek, Kullo, keep an eye on Pidge’s status. Everyone else, stay diligent. If it seems like Zarkon’s getting to close or Haggar’s going to take Pidge back, protect her!” Shiro ordered. The others confirmed that and went into action.

Meanwhile, in the green lion, Drek and Kullo felt helpless. Pidge had lost consciousness and whimpered on occasion. When the whimpering stopped, they were hopeful, but she still hadn’t woken up.

“C’mon, Pidge,” Drek whispered, gently squeezing Pidge’s hand, “you need to wake up. The team needs you. The universe needs you.” He watched for a moment, his ears twitching hopefully when Pidge grumbled. Then her eyes opened. “Pidge!”

“Pidge, are you okay?” Kullo asked, checking on the paladin as she slowly shifted her position.

“Ugh… I hate the komar. I hate Haggar. And I hate Zarkon.” Pidge sat up more. “I’m going to need some peanut butter when this is over.” She smiled when Kullo gave a joyous squeal and hugged her. “I’m fine. I’m fine now.” She then took hold of the controls. “And it’s time to turn this around and end this battle.”

Pidge took off, joining the others. She activated the vine cannon and shot at Zarkon, causing vines to grow around him and immobilize him. “That won’t hold for long; we need to come up with a plan!”

**“Glad to have you back in the game, Pidge.”** Keith said.

**“So what do we do? Form Voltron?”** Hunk inquired.

**“No, not yet; as we are, we can’t stop Zarkon, even as Voltron.”** Shiro commented. **“The bayard… he still has it. And I need to get it.”**

**“But how? We can’t get close enough in the lions, let alone outside...”** Lance reminded.

“Shiro, you may be able to. Don’t ask, but… I get this feeling you can. But you need to bond even further with your lion.” Pidge instructed.

Shiro was silent for a moment. **“Pidge, can you help make sure he’s still immobile? I need to get in close for this.”**

“Got it.” Pidge confirmed as she shot at Zarkon again, causing more vines to form as the others snapped. “You need to act quick, though.”

**“Copy that!”** Shiro went at Zarkon, hoping for the best as he tapped in further, hoping to deepen his connection with the black lion right then and there. What surprised the others was Shiro phasing through Zarkon. No one knew exactly how that happened, but it was a good thing. Especially when he had good news. **“Guys, I got it. I don’t know how, but I got it. I got the bayard. My bayard.”**

**“Good job, Shiro!”** Keith praised.

**“Okay, team, before Zarkon breaks free. Let’s form Voltron!”**

With Voltron back together, they did their best to fight Zarkon. They went in and struck, forming their sword. Zarkon, though, did his best to try and take control of the black lion out from under. Pidge knew that pain. She knew that strain. And unfortunately Shiro couldn’t seek comfort and guidance from his predecessor like she could.

But the current black paladin was resilient. He had his team backing him, supporting him through things. When they formed Voltron’s sword using Keith’s bayard in its port, Shiro did the same, causing the sword to get stronger and be covered in fire. They readied themselves.

**“Okay, team, we need to make this count. We’re almost out of time with Zarkon’s ship.”** Shiro reminded the team. **“We need to make this last hit count. Let’s do this!”**

Like the others, Pidge was in agreement. She was ready to put an end to Zarkon. She was ready to start the universe on the path to peace. She closed her eyes and focused, feeling her fellow paladins’ resolve through their bond with Voltron. As she focused more on the team, she could feel less and less of Haggar and she could feel Zarkon having less and less grasp over the black lion.

_“You can do this, Pidge. You and your team.”_

Pidge swore she heard Trigel whispering in her ear. She could have sworn she felt the previous paladin’s hands covering her own, reassuring her. _This is my team. And I’m fighting with them._ She thought. She then went forward with the others, going at Zarkon one last time. Zarkon, though, met them with vigor, aiming to take them down.

The strain was hard. Pidge did her best to stay together with the others, but Zarkon’s attack went through them and separated them. Before that, though, their sword went through Zarkon’s armor, piercing him through. When their lions were separated, the sword disappeared and no one was moving.

**“Paladins? Paladins, do you copy?”** Coran inquired. **“The ship’s gaining power! We need to go! Now!”**

**“Yeah we’re here… guys, let’s go.”** Keith said.

“Wait a tick… Shiro… the black lion’s not moving.” Pidge went for the lion and got on one side. Keith joined her on the other side and the two carried him and the lion back toward the castle, escaping through the wormhole Allura had formed. Along with them, the rebels also went through.

When they were safe and returned to the castle, they did counts and medical checks. They had lost rebels, both from Te-Osh’s group and from the Olkari. The numbers were fewer than originally feared, but that was better than how it could have turned out. And the others knew those deaths were not in vain. Rebels who were injured were placed in healing pods, along with Antok, who had gotten hurt when he, Allura, and Kolivan went to the ship to take down the Komar. Even Thace was placed.

And Shiro. That last attack with Zarkon took a toll on him. Thankfully, though, it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. However, Allura had no idea how long it would take for him to recover. The others needed a day to a week of rest in the pods, letting them recover, but Shiro was different. It could be days. It could be months. No one knew the answer or what was wrong with him.

Pidge sat in the hall near the infirmary. She waited with Drek and Kullo, leaning against Kullo for support. She was exhausted. The battle was a strain on her, especially mentally. She then looked up when she saw Colleen approach. She smiled and got up.

“I’m glad you made it. Mom.” Pidge went to her and hugged her mother. Matt was nearby and grinning, glad to see this between his sister and mother.

“I’m glad you did, too. Listening to the comms, I was worried for you. But I also knew your friends had your back.” Colleen stated. She then held one arm out. “Now get in here, boys. You need hugs, too.” Matt, Drek, and Kullo joined in on the hugging, happy for the sensation.

Down the hall, Haxus was smiling as he watched. Krolia went to him and elbowed him a bit. “You can go to them. You’re Pidge’s parent, too.” she reminded him.

“I know. But I think Pidge is being squished enough as it is, it’d be cruel of me to squish her more.” Haxus chuckled. “However...” He looked over. “Pidge, make sure you don’t get all hugged out. You know I’m gonna hug you after this!” From the middle of the group, Pidge put her hand up in the thumbs-up position. The others were chuckling in response. “And now we wait for news. Hope we were successful.”

“I hope we were.” Krolia sighed. “Especially for the sake of the children.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title is a slight poke at MitD's "Komar? Thanks, I hate it" chapter title. It seemed like a fun thing to me.  
> Well, hope ya'll enjoy! Until next time!


	47. A Change in the Voltron Force

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Shiro unable to pilot the black lion, fate decides to change things around in the other paladins.

Keith sighed as he went to get changed. Shiro was in the healing pod with no immediate sign as to when he would awaken. On top of that, they were informed that they wouldn’t know for about a week to know for certain if they truly did take down Zarkon. A grievance period, the paladins were told. When the emperor or empress would pass away, they would spend the following week preparing for their funeral rites along with calling together other Galra for what they call the Kral Zera, an event for when the next emperor or empress would take their place.

They knew they would still have battles to fight, the war was far from over, but this time they wouldn’t have Shiro. This time they couldn’t form Voltron.

“Shiro… what do we do without you?” he asked himself. He looked to his arm. He often sought out comfort in seeing the mark there, but this time was different. His indigo eyes widened as he saw it wasn’t there. It made no sense; for as long as he could remember, his whole life according to his parents, that mark had always been there.

He wasn’t the only one who had a dilemma, though. A few doors down, Lance was in his room and was met with a similar predicament. When he want to change, he had stopped, though, when he saw that the mark wasn’t on his right leg where it had always been. This surprised him until he noticed it elsewhere. His right arm and up on the shoulder.

It made no sense. Keith was supposed to be the right arm of Voltron, the red lion. But somehow the mark for the red lion was on him. He was worried. Rather than going to one of the adults to point this out, he went to Keith’s room; he felt it was best since Keith was supposed to be the red paladin.

“Keith! Keith, we’ve got a...” Lance froze as the door slid open.

Keith looked back at Lance before turning around. “I’m going to completely disregard the fact that you ran into my room in only your underwear in favour of the fact that yes… there is a problem.” He held up his arm, showing it to be bare. “I don’t know what happened… did I do something wrong?”

“Um… buddy?” Lance pointed to the mirror that was in Keith’s room. This prompted Keith to look back, seeing his reflection. There, he saw a mark on his back, spanning from shoulder to shoulder.

“Oh shit...”

Keith’s eyes widened. This couldn’t have meant that Shiro was or would die, right? It had to be something else? Or perhaps the fates had determined that they would need Voltron sooner?

“Okay, okay… I did not see this coming...” Keith mumbled. “But… if the marks changing means we’re changing lions…”

“So someone has to be Blue’s paladin, right?” Lance asked. “Should we… should we hold a meeting or...”

Keith bit his lip. That was the best option, right? They had to at least inform the others. He honestly wished this wasn’t the case, but there was a change in the Voltron force.

-+-+-+-

“Allura?” Pidge poked her head into the princess’ room. She looked around it. It was definitely extravagant. And tidy. It wasn’t like how she was used to having her quarters. Small. Efficient. And cluttered. And rooming with others. Pidge really liked having Drek and Kullo as her roommates.

“In here!” Allura called from the conjoining room. Her own personal bathroom. “I’ll be out in a tick.”

Pidge shrugged and went over to the bed, deciding to sit on the edge of it. Doing so, she sank into the mattress with a surprised squeak. “Ugh, why’s this thing have to be so soft?” she asked. “It’s like sitting on a cushion of goop covered in fabric.” She looked over to the mice that stared up at her. “What? Okay, so I know this from experience. I wasn’t the most popular in training camp and Kathru and I really did not get along. Even more so than Drek’s and my first meeting.”

“Kathru? Another friend from training?” Allura came out of the other room, a towel wrapped around her body and her hair pulled up into a loose ponytail; on her skin, Pidge could see that the Altean marks were more than just the sickle shapes on her cheeks. The princess didn’t hear everything, only about camp and the other Galran’s name.

“Training, yes. Friend? Yeah right.” Pidge grumbled. “She and I were stuck sharing the same quarters and were on the same training team. We despised each other, constantly argued, and undermined one another. Me because I actually knew what I was doing and was in favour of getting the team through training simulations, her because she’s a… well… I don’t know the translation and last time I said that word, it hurt to sit down for vargas.”

Allura blinked. She didn’t understand what Pidge meant until it dawned on her. Haxus mentioned Sendak only putting the small girl over his knee and smacking her once; the word she had for whoever Kathru was must have been what he reprimanded her for. Thinking of it, she almost snorted in laughter. “Well, it’s best to refrain from talking in ways that’ll get us reprimanded, huh?” she mused as she turned to go to her wardrobe. “Anyway, did you need something?”

“Yeah, the others called a meeting.” Pidge commented.

“Do you know what about?” Allura asked.

“I don-” Pidge froze. She looked at Allura, seeing her thigh where the towel slipped slightly where the two ends were supposed to meet. It wasn’t that seeing more of the princess caught the paladin’s attention, but rather what she saw. “I think I know now.”

“Hmm?”

Pidge pointed at Allura’s leg. This prompted the princess to look down. She shifted her leg a bit to see it better. She then went over to a full length mirror, examining the splotch more. It certainly wasn’t an Altean mark, and it most definitely wasn’t a mark that had been there before. Upon her right thigh, sticking out as a patch of paler skin, was a paw print mark.

The mark of the paladin.

“Oh my…” Allura stared. “But… how… how did… why?”

“I think you should get dressed and we get to this meeting…” Pidge commented. “I don’t know how… princessy it is, but… got any shorts?” She felt it was better to wear shorts and show the mark so the others don’t question about finding a blue paladin. While she didn’t know the details, she already had a feeling that something happened and there was a shift in who piloted which lion; Allura’s mark and the call for a meeting was enough to tell her that.

-+-+-+-

The others met in the dining hall. Team Voltron, sans the comatose and recovering Shiro, the members of the Blade of Marmora in the castle, and even some of the rebels that were there had gathered to talk about the situation at hand. When Allura and Pidge walked in, eyes turned to them. It didn’t take long for anyone to notice the mark on Allura’s thigh, the shorts she wore showing it perfectly.

“Well,” Keith sighed, “the good news is we don’t have to look far.” He smiled softly, thankful that Allura had the mark of the paladin on her instead of them having to search the universe for another paladin. “But this hits further… the order of paladins...”

“So another has...” Allura trailed off. She looked to see that Lance was wearing a sleeveless top, a blue version of the green one Pidge so often wore. His newly repositioned mark was on his shoulder and visible as ever. “But what about you, Keith?”

“It’s… on my back.” Keith commented. “And I’m not offering fanservice just to show.”

“Fan...ser...” Pidge shook her head. “Earthling thing, I guess.”

“Anyway… I don’t understand why this happened… why the marks changed...” Keith sighed. He looked to Coran, hoping the adviser would have some insight.

“Honestly, I’ve never seen anything like this.” Coran commented. “With the previous paladins, there was no shift in who would pilot what lion.” He thought it over. “But long ago, before there even was a Voltron… before the lions, the paladins were leaders who banded together. Yes, even Zarkon before he changed and his greed for power and control consumed him. And back then… there were no marks.”

“Wait, there weren’t any?” Hunk asked. “Then how…?”

“It was after the lions were built that the marks showed up.” the older Altean responded. “It appeared to be a response to the lions. To Voltron. But even then, it’s still mysterious. Either way, I think that whatever controls this, fate, change, I don’t know, but whatever it is, I think it senses that Shiro may not wake soon and the universe still needs Voltron.”

“Then why couldn’t it have found another for the black paladin? Or have Allura take that role?” Keith asked. “I’m… I’m not...” He didn’t feel ready. Shiro was a good leader. Older. Wiser. And able to work with the others. Keith was still learning.

“You’re not alone, Keith.” Krolia put a hand on her son’s shoulder, assuring him of the situation. “You have a team to back you up, both in the lions and in the castle. You can always turn to others for help.”

Keith gave a gentle nod. He then looked to the others. “Just because our positions have changed… doesn’t mean we’re ready. We need to train. We need to make sure we can form Voltron again.”

“But not now.” Kolivan pointed out. “You need to rest. All of you.”

“We need to be abl-”

“Don’t argue, Keith.” Kolivan nearly snarled. “You may be an adult by Earthling standards, but I will still ground you.” Keith shut his mouth. “After a rest, then you can train and prepare. But not before.”

The others, especially Hunk, were in agreement in the end. Rest was needed. Rest, though, didn’t mean they had to go to bed yet. So Pidge went with Drek, Kullo, Matt, and Hunk to the kitchen, the yellow paladin fixing up some snacks.

“A change in the paladins… wow.” Hunk mused. “It’s strange. Convenient, too. But I’m glad I didn’t change. I’m still with Yellow.” He smiled softly. “I like the yellow lion.”

“Same here, but with Green.” Pidge commented.

“You’d probably argue with the lions themselves if your mark changed and you had to fly a different one.” Drek teased.

“I agree. Or you’d have been a squatter and refused to leave.” Matt added. “You practically have it set up like a small apartment.”

“I like my lion; I’ve known her… wow. I think my entire life practically.” Pidge blinked. “Whoa. That’s a long time. I mean, not that I could get to her right away… I was a bit older, but still. The moment I could and go inside, yeah… I practically live there...”

“After we became friends and would contact each other, we could always tell when she was in the green lion; most of the time she was there.” Kullo informed.

“Anyway,” Pidge sighed, “do you think we’d do okay? I mean in forming Voltron again? I know we’re a team but… two fifth of the team would be in new lions that have different feels and Allura’s new to piloting a lion...”

“We’re gonna have to take it easy, otherwise we’ll be a mess.” Hunk mumbled. “But… in the end? I think we will. We’ve managed before, and this time will be easier since we know each other more and have the same goals.”

“Yeah.” Pidge nodded. “You’re right.” Thinking of it, she felt it would be better, especially since she was all there and not conflicted about her position in the team. “We’ve got this handled.”

“And I’ve got the snacks handled.” Hunk chuckled, setting out some bowls on the counter. “So, let’s enjoy the snacks, relax, and catch up on some much needed rest. We’ve got a busy day tomorrow.”


	48. Altean

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After training, the team is led to what appears to be an Altean ship. Or at least half of one. But they aren't the only ones interested in it.

“Remember my comment about having this handled? Yeah, I take that back.” Pidge commented as she laid strewn out on one of the couch segments in the common room.

“C’mon, Pidge, we formed Voltron again.” Lance reminded, looking excited. It was the same energy he had when they formed Voltron after their hard training in and around the castle. “And think, we didn’t need that mind meld thing this time. Or a food fight.”

Pidge blinked. She realized Lance made a valid point, but that didn’t make it any better. They ended up having trouble by being chased by a Galra battleship and not knowing how to form Voltron yet. They were even chased to a planet called Thayserix, a planet of volatile gasses and magnetic energy that disrupted their radars. Miraculously, they managed to get out of there, form Voltron, and take down the battleship.

“You know, all of a sudden, I’m actually missing Allura and Coran’s ideas of training.” Pidge lowered her head, hiding it in her arms as she let out an exhausted sigh. “That planet sucked and you guys argued way too much.”

“We weren’t arguing.” Allura let out a huff as she put her hands on her hips.

“Allura,” Pidge pushed herself up some, “I went to training camp. I’ve bunked with others. I’ve done simulated missions with them. I know arguing from a firsthand position. There was lots of arguing.”

Allura opened her mouth before closing it. She recalled Pidge mentioning a Galra named Kathru the other day. “Okay, maybe we were arguing. But Keith and Lance hold that record with the most arguments in one task.”

“I couldn’t agree more.” Pidge nodded in agreement.

“Hey!” Lance whined.

“At least there were less claws.” Kullo said.

“Oh thank goodness…” Drek mumbled. He dealt with the wrath of Pidge before and it was not pretty.

The others took to relaxing for a moment until Kolivan entered. There, they learned of something that was picked up on the radar. A weak signal.

A weak Altean distress signal.

“I didn’t think it was possible, but this is definitely an Altean signal.” Coran stated when everyone was on the bridge. “I’ve managed to narrow in on its location.”

Allura was stunned. An Altean signal and they knew where it was. “Then we must head there.”

“But what if it’s a trap?” Keith suggested. “We can’t just charge in; it could be the Galra luring us in for an attack.”

“And it could be Alteans in need of our assistance.”

Keith didn’t blame Allura for being persistent. She had spent this time believing she and Coran were the last of the Alteans; this signal was beacon filled with hope for her. But he was still unsure of things. He then cast a look to Kolivan who simply motioned back to Allura. “Okay then. But we need to proceed with caution and be prepared for anything.”

“Right.” Allura nodded. “Coran, head for the signal.”

“Copy that, Princess.”

Coran got the ship moved, the distance not being too far so they didn’t use the wormhole. When they arrived, there were three things that caught their attention. One was a glowing rift. It swirled with brilliant energy and was nearly all white in how it was illuminated. The second thing was the ship sticking out of it. It was only half of the ship, the other half being inside that strange rift.

“It’s a Tel-Galax exploration shuttle.” Coran declared, recognizing what it was automatically.

“Is… is that a wormhole it’s sticking out of?” Drek inquired.

“If it is, it’s not like any I’ve seen before.” the adviser responded.

“What about that other ship?” Lance questioned, pointing out a ship docked nearby. It was predominately gray and blue, with a strange orange accent on it. “Galra?”

“It doesn’t look like any I know of, old and new models,” was Kullo’s response.

“And it’s not a Blade ship.” Kolivan added.

“Coran, can you hale them?” Allura requested.

“I’m trying but they aren’t responding.”

“They could be on that Altean ship… I’m picking up biorhythms from there and not the blue ship.” Hunk reported as he checked the data from his station.

“We should investigate. Find out who they are… and if there are Alteans on that ship.” Allura commented.

“Princess, it might be too risky.” Keith stated. “Especially with that glowing thing.”

“We could send a probe to try and gain further data.” Pidge suggested. Keith confirmed that and Pidge sent one out. They watched on the screen as it came into contact with the glowing region before exploding.

“I vote we don’t go near that...” Lance commented.

“I second the notion.” Hunk agreed.

“Hmm...” Allura was in thought. “We need to know what’s going on… and maybe whoever is on the ship can shed light.”

“Princess...” Keith looked worried.

“If there are Alteans and they need help, I’m not turning my back on them. I wasn’t there when our planet was destroyed… I can’t not be there for them now.”

Keith bit his lip. “Fine. But we need to be cautious. And not get too close to that glowing field...” he stated. “Coran, can you continue running scans from here?”

“Yes. But… please… be careful out there.” Coran was worried, but he knew he couldn’t stop the princess. Allura was stubborn and strong willed. At least, which he counted his blessings for, she wasn’t alone.

The others got ready. The paladins, Drek, Kullo, and Matt set out, assuring the others they would be fine. To ensure that not all of the lions would be at risk of capture if it was a trap, they used only the green lion to go in, stopping near the end of the ship and finding a way in. Once in, they found that the ship’s artificial gravity was turned off; with them being at the tail end of it, they figured the way to turn it on was at the front, on the other side of the glowing rift.

“Hunk, are you able to narrow down the biorhythms?” Allura inquired.

“Not quite but… there are some. They seem to be grouped together, though I don’t know where.” Hunk admitted.

“It could be interference from the energy emitting from the rift.” Pidge pointed out.

“Well, if they’ve got the same data we do, then they won’t be too close to it; they’ll be further back like we are.” Keith rationalized. “Let’s proceed with caution.”

They went through the ship, checking around and performing scans, hoping to find anything out. As they moved about, Drek was on edge, huddling near Matt some.

“Okay, this place is spooky… it’s like a ghost ship.” Drek mumbled.

“Oh good I’m not the only one getting that feeling.” Hunk commented.

“C’mon, you two, it’s not that bad.” Pidge couldn’t help but chuckle, amused by Drek and Hunk’s mutual fear. If anyone dared to say that humans and Galra were nothing alike, then she would gladly show the similarities in a well shown display with many examples found in her team alone. She then stopped and looked around.

“Pidge?” Lance looked to his fellow paladin. “What’s wrong?”

“I thought I heard something.” Pidge commented.

“I hope it’s more of those furballs...” Drek mumbled.

Pidge readied her bayard and listened. Something moved around, she could tell, but no one could see it. She focused, following very subtle sounds, discerning the difference between the ship creaking and the shuffling of others. “Got’cha.” She used her thrusters to speed over to Keith and used her bayard, shooting it at an unseen figure and wrapping the tether around them. She caused it to shock whoever she snagged.

There was indeed a person there and they were cloaked, much like the green lion could; whether this was a natural ability or technology, the others didn’t know right off. She wore armor identical to the colour scheme of the other ship docked nearby. She seemed to be predominately red skinned with a few other splashes of colour; her helmet showed she appeared to have a sort of long appendage protruding from the back of her head. She let out a pained cry as the electricity coursed through her.

At that, others showed up from another corridor, all with the same uniforms. They went at the group, seeming to want to aid their ally. The largest of the group went at Hunk first, knocking him back before pinning Lance down before he could shoot at her. An agile looking one with a tail struck at Matt and Drek, moving about. Keith faced off against what appeared to be a woman with blue skin. The final figure, what looked like a Galran man with white hair, went against Allura, bringing forth a sword and clashing it against Allura’s bayard. With everything going on, the only one left out of the mess was Kullo, who understandably hid around the corner.

“Stand down and tell your warrior to release my friend.” the one against Allura snarled.

“You stand down first.” the princess bit back. She knocked the stranger back a bit before going at him, her bayard whipping towards him. He managed to go back further and dodge it before diving under, darting right at the princess. He hoped to knock her off her feet, but she got over him with the help of her thrusters. With the lack of gravity, fighting was not easy, but neither of them were backing down.

“Why are you even here?” Allura hissed out, going after the man again, hoping to hit him with her bayard. Using his own thrusters on his armor, he kept dodging her, some almost not fast enough.

“If you really must know,” he commented, “to find out about this ship and what happened to the Alteans on board. And to further investigate this rift of quintessence and hope to get it closed.”

“What?” Allura faltered. She didn’t expect that answer.

Seeing the falter, the man saw his opening. He went at the princess one more time, ready to hit her, but he stopped when he was close enough. He looked to see her face, seeing the sickle-shaped marks on her face. “Wait a tick… you’re Altean.”

Allura looked up at him, seeing his face. The first thing she saw was purple, but after that, she saw marks on his face in a reddish hue. She then watched as he did the unexpected. He shifted. His skin took on a mocha shade and his height shortened a bit, though he was still taller than the Altean princess. He still retained the yellow sclera that was normal in the Galra, but he was definitely Altean.

“You’re Altean, too.” Allura staggered back, stunned by this news. She then looked to the others. With hers and the man’s situation, they all ceased their fighting; Pidge kept her opponent tied up, but she stopped the electricity. “Who… who are you?”

The man relaxed before looking to the others. “You can stand down; we needn’t fight anymore.” he told them, mainly his allies. He then turned his attention back to Allura. “I am Lotor. The son of a Galran. And an Altean.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Altean Lotor able to do that "shapeshifting" that Alteans do? You're welcome.  
> I hope y'all enjoyed the chapter! Until next time!


	49. Overgrown Tribble

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When venturing to another reality, the team meet some unlikely faces in a peculiar situation.

An Altean. Of all the people to meet, Allura was surprised to meet Lotor. Yes, she had hoped to meet Alteans, know they were okay, but Lotor, a Galran-Altean mix, was definitely not expected. He looked Altean for the most part when he reversed his shifting, but his eyes still looked Galran with the yellow sclera.

Cautiously, he and his allies, all half-Galrans, were allowed in the castle so they could talk. Allura had so many questions running in her head, she didn’t know where to start. Lotor, though, knew right where to begin.

“To know that our princess is still alive? I had hopes but to see this as reality? I am in both disbelief and total relief.” Lotor offered a smile. “I had found and read some old coded messages of King Alfor and he said in them how he had, for the sake of the people of the universe, hid his daughter away to protect her as well as the lions. But to actually meet you...”

“Dude, he sounds like a fan meeting his favourite celebrity finally.” Lance snickered a bit.

Allura blushed a bit and rubbed the back of her head. “I’m… flattered, really.” she told Lotor. “But… messages from my father...”

“They were older… he had passed before I had gotten my hands on them.” Lotor explained. “Other Alteans had them at the time when I found them and I was able to decode them.”

“So there really are other Alteans?” Allura looked hopeful. When Lotor nodded, her smile turned bright as she went to Coran. “Oh Coran! We’re not the last! There are more!”

“I heard. This is glorious news.” Coran looked just as pleased and even relieved. “They had managed to survive.”

“Zarkon thought he had them all destroyed, but they were hiding.” Lotor stated. “Well… except me.”

“Except you?” Allura turned back toward the half-breed.

“At least until my banishment.” Lotor stated. “After all, I may be Altean… but even Zarkon can’t refuse the fact that he is, biologically that is, my father.” No one expected that news. They could see he was a mix of Galran and Altean, even he pointed that out, but the son of Zarkon?!

“Zarkon’s child?” Coran questioned. “Then that means… your mother must be Honerva… but she...”

“I don’t know what happened to her after I was born; I was always told she died.” Lotor seemed unsure. “But for now, this isn’t what’s important. What is is that ship.” He looked out through the observation windows, seeing the ship in front of them.

“I thought so, too.” Allura stated. “There could be more Alteans on the other side.”

“Indeed.” Lotor nodded. “And another item I want to find and keep from the empire.”

“Hmm?” Allura looked curious.

“Perhaps you’ve heard of it; certainly… Coran was it? Surely you’ll know of it.” Lotor looked over to the Altean adviser. “On the other side of that rift is the other half of the ship. And in the middle? A trans-reality comet.”

“Of course! Then that means that glowing rift… it’s quintessence.” Coran declared, looking stunned. “Mightiest Wimbleton, I never expected to see another in my life.”

“Huh?” Lance looked over. “What’s this… comet thing?”

“It’s a mysterious comet believed to create gateways between realities.” Coran declared. “And the last time I had seen one, it crashed on the Galran planet of Daibazaal. It was used to create the lions.” The others were stunned to learn of that. “We don’t know much about the rift though… only that it caused problems. And it was destroying the planet it crashed on.” He sighed. “The only way to seal it off and protect others… King Alfor had to destroy it. The planet, too.”

“He… he made sure to help people first, right?” Hunk didn’t want to think ill of the late king, but he wanted to be sure. He squeaked and ducked down behind Pidge when Allura actually glared at him, as though questioning how he could dare to ask that.

“Indeed. We held a mass evacuation of the planet and made sure all inhabitants were safely relocated and helped so they could live in other locations without problem.” Coran stated. “But by then… it was too late for Zarkon… and Honerva.” He sighed and shook his head. “We believed them to have already passed away… but something from the quintessence in that rift...” He pushed the thoughts aside. “But if there’s a comet on the ship, then it could be in danger. If the empire gets their hands on it...”

“Indeed. I was hoping to get the comet and dislodge it, keeping it from the wrong hands.” Lotor informed. “Dare I say it, I had even hoped to use it on our ships, making them stronger so we can better protect the Alteans.”

“But I don’t think we’re going to be able to pull the ship out from here.” Allura declared. “If the comet is the same thing that made Voltron… then we should be able to get through.”

“Wait a tick, Princess, that’s still ill advised. There’s no telling what exactly lies on the other side.” Coran spoke up.

“I agree with Coran.” Kolivan spoke up. “Even if it’s dangerous letting the empire get the comet, going through to try and get it is just as risky. So far, no one can dislodge it-”

“For how long though? It’s only a matter of time before someone figures it out.” Allura stated. “It doesn’t matter. Even if I have to go myself...”

The others knew Allura was set on this. There was no talking her out of it and the paladins agreed to go with her to mainly make sure she was safe. Wanting to go, too, Lotor joined them, assuring his team he would be fine and that they should stay back just in case.

“Does that mean we’re going back into a possibly haunted ship?” Drek asked, shivering some. “This should not be allowed.”

“Well, hopefully it won’t be so bad.” Pidge tried to assure him as they boarded the green lion. Once in their lions, they formed Voltron. From there, they proceeded to go through the rift, sticking close to the ship’s side. Pidge checked on their sensors, keeping an eye on Voltron and making sure they would make it. “Remarkable.”

**“Pidge? What is it?”** Keith inquired.

“The data. Looking at it, we should be torn apart and destroyed like the probe from earlier.” she informed. “But Voltron’s going strong. If anything… it’s almost like we’re charging up on more power. I don’t know how else to describe it.”

**“Further proof that we’ll make it through.”** Allura declared.

It didn’t take much longer for the group to emerge on the other side of the rift. When there, they could see the front half of the ship; turning around, they no longer saw the castle. They had lost all communication with Coran and those in the castle.

**“I hope we can get back...”** Lance mumbled over the comms.

**“Well, like anything else, we’ll figure it out.”** Allura assured. **“Hunk? Can you pick up on any other biorhythms?”**

**“Yeah, a number of them. I can’t quite pinpoint them… but the ship isn’t empty.”** Hunk reported.

**“Then we should go in and investigate.”** Allura declared. **“Let’s find an access point and get inside.”**

They were able to locate their entry point. For them to fully seal the airlock and move around normally, they would need to find the control room. Until then, they drifted through the still-creepy halls of the ship.

“This side isn’t any better...” Drek mumbled.

“Well, on the plus side we ran into Lotor and his group on the other side.” Pidge rationalized. “The odds of running into ghosts are minimal.”

“Er… shouldn’t logic dictate that it’d be _none_?” Drek’s ears twitched inside his helmet. Pidge simply hummed as she shrugged her shoulders; that did not sit well with the Galran. “Pidge? Pidge!” He whined.

“Drek, it’s fine.” Keith assured. “We’ll handle this.”

Allura led the way through the ship, getting them to the control room. There, she got it activated, relieved that there was still power. With the artificial gravity generator activated again, the were able to stand firm. “This is it… but there’s no one here.”

“Not like they could have gotten far.” Lance stated, noticing a space suit not too far from one of the stations. He went to check on it. “I mean, their suits are still he-whoa!” He cried out as he pulled the helmet off, showing a skeleton within. “That’s not empty!” He stumbled into the station, activating a recorded message to turn on; with that, the others barely had time to be as startled.

**“Based on King Alfor’s information, we were able to locate the second comet before Zarkon could.”** an Altean with a monocle said in the video; judging by that monocle, he was the same skeleton they found since it also had one. **“Despite collecting and securing it, there is no guarantee that we will make it back.”** He looked away when the ship seemed to shake. **“The comet is causing disturbances, much like it had on Daibazaal. We’ll do what we can for now, but I… what? What was tha-AAAAH!”**

The video went to static and the others stared, stunned by what they saw. Allura put her hand up to cover her mouth, her helmet in the way but the gesture still spoke volumes.

“That didn’t look good...” Lotor mumbled.

“It must have been what...” Lance looked to the skeleton sitting there. “But what about those other biorhythms?” He looked to Hunk.

“I’m not sure. I’m still picking up on some...” Hunk commented. He then yelped when something broke through the vent on the ceiling, a built but slender figure dropping down.

The figure, masked with their helmet, ran at Allura and Lotor, aiming to attack. They jumped out of the way when Lance tried to shoot them. Quick. Agile. They procured an energy blade of sorts from their side and turned on Lance next.

One enemy should have been easy to defeat. Right? But another showed up through a different door. This one was much bigger and broad shouldered; they definitely would not have fit in the vent. The bigger enemy charged in, a larger sword in hand and went at Hunk as the paladin readied his bayard. Lotor was light on his feet as he went in against the bigger foe, knocking him back.

“Just who are these two?” Allura asked, readying her bayard.

“Fight first, ask questions later!” Keith called as he engaged the smaller enemy in combat, keeping them back from Lance.

Pidge backed off a bit, keeping Kullo behind her. She watched the bigger enemy before readying her own bayard. She had it in its hookshot form, not that it differed much from its small katar-like form, and then fired it. It smacked the bigger foe right in the helmet, cracking the front visor.

The larger figure jumped back and faced her as the protective material cracked more and broke away, making their face more visible. It wasn’t a face Pidge expected, though. No one expected it. But the mauve fur and a scar over his eye, even if the mechanical part they knew was absent, most knew Sendak’s face well enough.

“S… Sendak?!” Pidge yelped, going rigid. “How… how are...” Matt moved in front of her, keeping her back. She then observed the Galran. That wasn’t her Sendak. That wasn’t the commander who looked after her and helped train her for practically her entire life.

“How do you know me? Or perhaps a spy for the Altean Empire?” Sendak snarled, readying himself for the fight. He then charged at the others. Matt tried to defend, but bigger and stronger, Sendak literally picked up the human and threw him at Hunk, the yellow paladin somewhat catching him; he at least broke the throw and fall, though they both ended up on the ground. Wasting no time, the Galran grabbed hold of Pidge by the front of her armor, lifting her up and pressing his sword to her throat; it wasn’t enough to cut the underarmor or skin, but a little more pressure would do the job.

“Put her down!” Lotor ordered. He had the other figure under his foot and pinned, Lance with his blaster pointed at him and Keith ready with his blade.

Sendak glanced back. He saw his partner subtly nod. “Do what you will with him, that’s not my concern.” he snarled. “What is is the empire deciding to send chil...dren...” He looked back at Pidge, his good eye widening. He stumbled back and dropped her. “P… Pidge? You’re supposed… no… this is some trick by the empire, isn’t it?!”

“Trick? What are you yammering on about?” Pidge asked, getting back up with Drek and Kullo’s help.

“Galrans...” Sendak noticed the green paladin’s friends finally.

“Please, let’s stop this conflict, okay?” Allura said. “We’ll release your friend… but just explain to us what’s going on.”

“Friend? Pssh.” The Galran didn’t seem amused. “And why should I trust you? I can tell for certain that two of you are Alteans… As for him. Do with him what you will.”

“Oh, that’s real pleasant, Sendak.” the other figure said, his voice extremely familiar. “You’re a bastard and you know it.”

“Takes one to know one.” Sendak grumbled.

Allura stared for a moment before looking to Lotor. He shrugged before releasing the other figure. Once free, the other stood up and removed his helmet, his features striking, familiar, and unexpected.

Shiro. Takashi Shirogane. But he didn’t fully look human. Sporting the white hair but lacking the scar, this Shiro also had pointed ears and purple Altean marks on his cheeks. He stormed up to Sendak. “We’re supposed to work together you overgrown tribble. And you’re practically throwing me to the klanmüirls.” He sighed and looked over to the others, noticing their shock. “Hmm? You look like you’ve seen ghosts.”

“Well… it almost feels like it.” Hunk sat up. “Dude! What the hell is going on? Shiro’s awake from his coma and now an Altean and Sendak is his friend?”

“We’re not friends.” the two said in unison.

“And I don’t know how you know me… but I assure you, I’ve never been in a coma, I’ve always been an Altean, and I don’t know any of you.”

“Seriously? Dude, you’re-” Lance started to say.

“Wait a tick, guys!” Pidge spoke up, getting everyone’s attention. “A different Sendak, and Altean Shiro… Coran said the comet was believed to create gateways between realities. Obviously we’re in another reality.”

“Reality?” Sendak looked to Shiro. “Isn’t Slav always rambling about those?”

“Unfortunately.” Shiro mumbled.

“Now that we have this part situated, can you explain to us what-” Allura dared to step closer, but she found Sendak’s sword pointed at her.

“Keep back, Altean.” Sendak snarled. “Alteans are nothing but trouble and can’t be trusted.”

“What?!” Allura looked insulted. “But he’s Altean!” She motioned to Shiro.

“And I don’t trust him.”

Shiro cast his own glare at Sendak before stopping. He seemed to think it over before shrugging. “Yeah, that’s fair.”

Pidge sighed and then went over. She motioned to her friends, silently telling them things were fine. “Okay, but we don’t get why you don’t trust them, not even your partner.” she said. “Can we just at least lower the weapons and talk this over? Help us understand what’s going on?”

Sendak looked to Pidge, his good eye showing softness. Just as Pidge had a Sendak in her reality, the others were starting to assume he had his own Pidge. Perhaps she was special to him, too. “The Alteans of the Empire have promised peace and a universe without war. But in doing so, they strip others of their will… or destroy those they cannot force into submission.” he stated. “They have ruined lives. Even the life of my daughter. Of my Pidge.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Altean Shiro in another reality for your viewing pleasure. And him calling Sendak a tribble was the best thing to come up with. I couldn't resist.   
> Anyway! I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter. Until next time!


	50. "Hopefully he sees how amazing you are."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Team Voltron continue in the other reality, they learn how bad it truly is and know they need to keep the comet from falling into the wrong hands.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Matt asked, looking over to where Pidge was sitting with the other reality’s Sendak. To no surprise, Drek and Kullo were with her; as much as possible, those three were inseparable. “She’s got um… I don’t want to call it an issue but...”

“We’ll keep an eye on things.” Allura stated. “But… he won’t hurt her, will he?” She looked to the Altean Shiro, who insisted on being called _Takashi_ , hoping he would have an answer.

“He may have a temper and not like me, but he’s a decent guy.” Takashi stated. “Especially for his daughter. And your Pidge looks just like his Pidge… er… well… his doesn’t have the scars...” He sighed. “Those scars… she’s seen hell...”

“She has… yeah.” Allura nodded. She knew the scars were more than just what were seen on the green paladin’s face; they were all over her body. Some of them, she was proud of, but others, she never explained them. “But as long as she’ll be safe...” She then looked to Takashi as he checked a holographic screen. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m making sure we’re safe.” Takashi stated. “There’s a good reason why Sendak doesn’t trust Alteans. Even I don’t trust other Alteans...”

Away from the group, Pidge’s face was being smooshed by Sendak’s hands, one covered in fur, the other mechanical and the same size as his biological hand. She couldn’t help but chuckle a bit when he did that, actually amused.

“So… there’s a Pidge in this reality? And she’s your daughter?” Drek asked.

“Adopted, but daughter nonetheless.” Sendak nodded. “She… lost her family when the Alteans took over her planet. Such a tiny little thing, could fit in the palm of my hand. I took her in and protected her. She’s safe at home, training and studying, not like I can stop her from that, but for now, she’s safe.” He moved his hands from the gentle squishing gesture and traced his fuzzy fingers over Pidge’s scars. “If only you could have been safe, too. These scars...” He then looked to Drek, noticing he had a couple on his face.

“Some of my scars are worth it.” Pidge said. “Kicked his rear when I earned these two on my jaw and a few on my arm. He’s got scars to match.”

“She’s always proud to announce that.” Drek commented, smirking a bit. Not everyone was open or fond to mention that they lost to Pidge in a fight, especially with her size, but he didn’t fully mind.

Sendak laughed. Genuinely laughed. While the other paladins were surprised, maybe even startled, to hear that, Pidge smiled brightly. “A battle well fought it seems.”

“Sendak, if you don’t mind my asking, what’s up with this reality? Is… are the Alteans that bad?” Pidge looked to Lotor, Allura, and Takashi. She didn’t know much about him, other than somehow he and Sendak work together despite not getting along, but she trusted Allura. Lotor was new, but perhaps she would trust him in time.

“They are.” Sendak nodded. “I’ve seen many Galrans suffer from it. The Alteans act like they’re working to create a peaceful universe, but their peace comes at the cost of others losing their freedom.”

“So they… become prisoners or slaves?” Kullo asked. “Unfortunately that’s… that’s how much of the Galra Empire is in our reality...” He looked downcast at that thought. Even before switching sides and joining the paladins, the idea of slavery and torture in the prisons made him uneasy.

“Slave is another term… but this...” Sendak let out a sigh. “They use these devices called _hoktrils_. It’s an implant that the Alteans force into the brains of those who revolt against them. It saps them of their wills… takes away who they are. Not just their fighting spirits… but their personalities. Their ability to think on their own.”

“That’s horrible...” Kullo covered his mouth.

“I mean, the empire in our reality isn’t much better, but at least the Galra have the guts to break the will… give a fighting chance in a way… but this...” Drek looked uneasy. Yes, he knew the Galra Empire was horrible, but at least there were some honour, however twisted it may seem. The Altean Empire? It sounded worse in its own special way.

“That’s why we’re fighting back. Doing out best.” Sendak glanced over at Takashi, noticing he was relaying the information to Pidge’s team, even going into more detail of how bad things were. “Even if I have to work with him. But… he’s proven useful. I don’t like him, but he’s stayed true to his word about wanting to take down the empire.” He looked back at the group. “And you guys… two little Galra fighting the empire they were born to… It’s nice that people born to corrupted lives can rise against it. I give Takashi a hard time, but… he’s doing his part. He wants to see true peace that is earned… not that’s forced like this. We all do.” He smirked a bit, looking rather amused. “And however much of a hard time I give him, he does the same to me. It’s how we cope and survive having to work together.”

“Sendak! We’ve got a problem!” Takashi shouted, catching the Galran’s attention. “Hira’s located us.”

“Shit!” Sendak got up. “We need to get to work.”

“Work?” Lance asked. “On what?”

“To keep the empire from getting that comet.” Takashi stated. “We’ve picked up on its energy signature thanks to the rift. If they get it...”

“We need to get going and ensure they don’t.” Sendak looked back to Pidge, Drek, and Kullo. With Alteans arriving, he didn’t want to leave them there. He wanted to protect Pidge, even if this one wasn’t his daughter, but he also wanted to keep the other Galrans safe; he didn’t want them to be victims of the Alteans’ desire to have control. “What about them?” he asked. “If the kits are caught...”

Takashi’s eyes were soft. He then looked to Allura. “If you’re caught by these Alteans… I don’t know what will happen. But for those two at least, it will not end well.” he told her.

Allura was worried. Even Lotor stood out with his eyes, but he could pass off for Altean as much as possible. But the kits…

“Allura, maybe we can help with the comet and try to get it out and safe.” Pidge suggested. “If we can help… maybe you can buy us time? I know you don’t want to think any Altean can be bad but...”

Indeed, Allura didn’t wish for any Altean to be bad. But listening to Takashi, she didn’t like the sounds of things. “Lotor, go with them. See what you can do to get that comet and make sure the Alteans can’t get it. We’ll buy you time.”

“Right. Good luck.” Lotor nodded. He then ran over to the others, joining them in the matter.

“I should be saying that to you since I’ve got my diplomatic charm.” Allura teased a bit. “Now go.”

The others left, leaving Allura with the remaining paladins and Matt, ready to intercept the Alteans. The princess hoped things would go well, that they could protect the comet and get it back home. At least there, she could hope that the comet would be kept from the wrong hands. She then turned her attention when there was clanging down the hall. Before long, the doors were opened and others entered. Soldiers. Sentries. One was barking orders before stopping.

“Wait a tick… Empress… Allura?” she asked.

“What? No, I’m… Princess Allura...” Allura stated. She held her composure when a blaster was pointed at her.

“What trickery is this?” the other Altean hissed.

“It’s no trickery, I swear.” Allura stated. “I’m… I’m not from here. None of us are.” She sighed. “We’re not from this reality.”

“Reality?” The Altean looked over to a white haired male.

“If she’s telling the truth… then my theories have been proven correct...” the male Altean muttered.

-+-+-+-

“Empress Allura?” Pidge asked as she helped place some explosives. They didn’t know how to get the comet free, it was stuck in the middle of the rift, but they could at least damage the ship, keeping the enemy from getting it moved.

“Yes. She is the one who controls the universe. I… used to serve her as a soldier.” Takashi stated. “But when I discovered of her deeds and what she’s allowed, claiming it was for peace, I pulled away. I sought out the rebels to aid them. Understandably so, no one trusted me. Until Slav spoke up on my behalf.” He helped to place the needed charges. “If the Alteans of this reality get that comet, Slav said they could further their terror and conquest not only on this reality, but on others as well.”

“All the more reason to stop them then.” Drek said. “But… how would they react to seeing Allura?”

“Hopefully they would react fairly well. Or she can talk her way out of it.” Lotor admitted. “But considering none of them are Galran-”

“Noticeable Galran; Keith doesn’t look it, but he’s half Galran, too.” Pidge interrupted.

“-correction, noticeable Galran, things should be better for them than for most of us. I may look Altean, but my eyes are kind of a dead giveaway.”

“Well, hopefully we can...” Sendak stopped. “Is the ship moving?”

“It’s moving… and out of the rift.” Pidge looked to the rift. They were outside the ship when placing the explosives. Looking over, she could see them emerge from it, the rift closing behind the ship. “Oh quiznak...”

“That doesn’t look good.” Kullo commented.

**“Pidge, do you copy?”** Matt whispered over the comm. **“Are you there?”**

“We’re here. What’s wrong, Matt? The ship… it left the rift.” Pidge responded.

**“Allura’s trying to maintain the trust of the Alteans here. Moving the ship was the best bet. But… we need to defend that comet and get to it before the enemy does.”**

“Okay, so ship’s out… but how do we get back?” Drek asked.

“We should be able to hold onto the comet as Voltron and break through the rift if we go through where we came in at at the exact same coordinates.” Pidge mused.

“I can start scanning for that.” Kullo offered.

**“Go for it.”** Matt confirmed. **“For now, though… we have our hands tied… Thankfully not literally. At least until Keith loses his temper because he’s really hating these guys.”**

“Hmm, we may have an idea for a distraction.” Lotor commented, looking to Shiro and Sendak. “Stand by for the signal; it should be obvious.” He nodded. “I think these charges will help to give the others an opening so we can get back to the lions. With Voltron, we can take the comet and escape to our reality with it.”

Sendak seemed to think it over. “It is for the best; in this reality, it can only cause problems.” he stated.

“As much as I hate the big guy,” Takashi motioned to the Galran, “I agree. You guys get to whatever ships you’re using. Let us know when and we’ll set off the charges.”

“And good luck.” Sendak moved and pulled Pidge into a hug. “Take care of yourself. Hopefully the Sendak in your reality opens his eyes… or eye if he’s like me, and sees just how amazing you are.”

“I hope so, too.” Pidge nodded. “Be safe.” She then left, getting back to the green lion, this time having Lotor with her instead of Matt. “Okay, guys, we’re in. But that’s just one lion; there are four more. The rest of the team should be able to make it, though.”

**“Copy that. Detonation in three. Two. One.”** Sendak did the countdown, then the charges went off, blowing up parts of the ship.

Pidge waited. She smiled after a few moments when the others reached their lions, Matt with Keith in the black lion.

**“Okay, team, let’s make this quick. You got the comet’s location?”** Keith inquired.

“And our coordinates to get out of here.” Kullo confirmed.

**“Then let’s do this!”**

Effortlessly, the paladins formed Voltron. They then broke into the ship further, locating the comet and grabbing hold of it. The enemy Alteans were not pleased by this and started attacking them.

**“We’re under some heavy fire!”** Lance announced.

**“But we can’t retaliate and risk losing the comet; we need to push through!”** Allura insisted.

**“Don’t worry, you’ve got back up.”** Sendak’s voice came over their comms.

From their respective positions, those in Voltron could see more ships come in. They didn’t look like they were of Altean design; when they started attacking the Altean ships, the Voltron team knew they were more rebels.

**“You guys get going. We’ve got you covered.”** Sendak informed. **“And good luck. Protect your reality. We’ll do our part to protect ours.”**

Pidge smiled. “Thanks, Sendak. Be strong out there.” she said.

The paladins moved forward, ready to get out of that reality. They got to where they needed and pushed through, having the comet first so it could open up the needed path. They braced themselves as they got through, the path closing behind them in an instant.

**“Oh! Thank the ancients! You all made it!”** Coran declared over the comms. **“Are you okay? Princess? Paladins?”**

**“Don’t worry, Coran, we’re fine.”** Allura confirmed. **“And we have the comet.”**

-+-+-+-

“Thank you, Princess, for letting me be a part of this mission to get the comet.” Lotor stated. It was set up in a special containment field, hoping they can transport it without having another problem like what the previous ship and the Alteans on it had faced. “And for allowing me to have access to it. Hopefully I can follow Alfor’s notes and set these to ships. To be stronger to protect my people… our people.”

“To know our people are alive and safe. And to know you’re working hard to protect them more.” Allura smiled. “This is wonderful news. I hope you’re able to get these ships made.”

“If possible, I’d like for you to join me.” Lotor looked away. “But I know you have an obligation to the blue lion. To Voltron.”

“That and… with my ties and who I am, I do not want my presence to jeopardize their safety.” Allura admitted. “As much as I would love to meet the other Alteans, I want them safe. And keeping my distance for now will do that.”

“One day, though, I’m sure you will meet them.” Lotor offered a kind smile. “And when I return to them, I will tell them of meeting you. And the paladins. We will give them more hope.” He nodded. “And when the ships are done, we’ll do what we can to help you.”

“I appreciate it. And I’m sure the others do, too.” Allura held out her hand; Lotor gently took it. “Good luck out there.”

“The same to you, Princess.”

“Allura. Just call me Allura.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoa, am I really at fifty chapters now? Holy crow, how did that happen?  
> Well, I hope you guys have been enjoying the fic thus far and this chapter.   
> Until next time!


	51. Mother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For some people, family reunions are great. But for Kullo, it's a stressful time, especially when it happens so suddenly and while he's on a mission.

“This is troubling.” Krolia muttered as she met with the other Blades on board. “We’ve not heard news about the Kral Zera. Or Zarkon.”

“Other Blades are doing what they can.” Kolivan reminded. “And Zarkon… he may unfortunately still be alive.”

“Though with how things are going, he could be in critical condition.” Ulaz stated. “So he won’t be making commands for a while.”

“We’ll continue keeping an eye on things. And working to take back the universe.” Kolivan stated. “For now, though, we should report to the bridge and be ready for the next planet the paladins liberate.”

On the bridge, the others were making plans, figuring things out. They came across another planet in need. Tuzeon. There was a ground base there and battlements around. The poor souls who called it home were enslaved by the conquering Galra.

“Okay, team, let’s make quick work of this and try not to lead trouble to where the civilians are.” Keith stated. “Pidge, Kullo, do you think you can shut the base down?”

“If we’re on the inside, yeah.” Pidge confirmed.

“Right. Lance, Matt, Drek, you three aid them, make sure they get in safely and watch their backs as they get the base shut down. Hunk, Allura, you two are with me. They’ll have fighters, so we need to take them down as much as possible.”

The team confirmed their missions and went to their lions, ready to get the job done and free another planet. Keith, Allura, and Hunk went in first, giving Pidge and Lance cover to fly in.

**“Wow, this base is pretty big.”** Lance commented.

“They’ve probably been building on it for many deca-phoebs.” Pidge confirmed. “But we’ve got this.” Pidge landed Green a bit, though for extra measures she had the lion pounce around, crushing sentries that tried to shoot at them. “Drek?”

“Copy that, I’m ready.” Drek had a blaster on hand, given to him by Coran. It was good to cover long distance so that Lance wasn’t the only one on that end of the fight; if opponents got too close, he had his sword on him. He ran out first, blasting at remaining sentries; from the blue lion, Lance did the same.

“We need to get to a basic computer first so I can get a schematic of this base; there we can find the main computers system to control it.” Pidge informed.

“Copy that, let’s do this.” Lance confirmed. “Drek, take the rear.”

“On it.” Drek nodded.

Lance led them in, shooting at any drone and sentry in the way; any that came behind them, Drek handled. It didn’t take long for Pidge to locate a basic computer, getting into it and bringing up a map of the base.

“Okay, it’s rather big but it’s a fairly direct base.” she stated. “I mean, we can traverse the vents but...”

“Pidge, you’ve always been the only one who can get through those easily. And I don’t like small spaces like that.” Kullo whimpered.

“Yeah, so that’s out.” Pidge nodded. “It’ll take time, but I think I’ve got us a path. It won’t be easy; we’ll have sentries to plow through.”

“Heh, I think Lance and I can handle those guys.” Drek assured.

“Blue team kicking metal rear. Booya, baby.” Lance cheered.

“But you’re the red paladin...” Kullo reminded.

“Yeah and still in blue armor. Don’t remind me that I’m working with that form of blasphemy.” Pidge grumbled. “The quiznaking animal...”

“Don’t start with that.” Lance grumbled.

“Ah, proud of my sister.” Matt hummed.

“Okay, I’ve got our path.” Pidge got the data transfers to her tech. “We’ll wanna go down that way, past seven halls, then turn right at the eighth. Lance, take the lead.”

“Seven down, right at eight. Got it.” Lance nodded and went ahead of the group, keeping on guard as he went along. Save for enemy forces, namely sentries, stepping in their way, trying to stop and either apprehend or shoot down the group, they moved rather smoothly.

Pidge directed Lance of every turn and how far they needed to move every so often, getting them closer to their target. When they finally reached the control station, Lance peaked into the room. He observed all who were in there. “Three sentries, two guards.” he commented. “I don’t know, is this the right area, Pidge?”

“I’m certain of it.” Pidge confirmed. She showed the data to Kullo who confirmed that they had the right area.

“I hate to doubt you two, but this doesn’t seem right.” Matt admitted.

Pidge thought it over. “We’ve done a simulation before.” she stated. “Most teams failed because they got overconfident. It was designed to feel too easy.”

“Yeah, some of our teammates were pissed at you for taking control, but we succeeded.” Drek pointed out.

“My point being, they know we’re in already. They want us to think it’s too easy so we let our guards down.” Pidge continued.

“Great, so we’re practically between a rock and a hard place.” Lance grumbled. “How’d you get through the simulation?”

“By trusting my team and utilizing everyone’s skills.” Pidge commented. “But a simulation differs from a real universe experience and they’re designed to be passable though difficult.” She scooted closer to Lance and looked in. “We’ll wanna take out the sentries first. Long distance shooting would be effective. Matt and I can attack the two soldiers. Kullo, can you try and take control of the base and shut it down?”

“Yeah, I think so.” Kullo nodded.

“We’ll have your back.” Pidge informed. She motioned to the other door on the other side of the room. “We’ll most likely get ambushed from other there and they’ll try to lock us out of the system. So, act quick, be on guard, and let’s do this.”

“Then we best get this done.” Lance nodded. He glanced inside against before darting past the doorway, readying himself on the other side. Drek went to where Lance previously was. Lance signaled a countdown for Drek, using his fingers to go from three to one. Once done, they emerged, shooting into the room, taking out the sentries currently there.

Following up behind the two with guns, Pidge and Matt ran in. Matt used his staff to beat down and pin a guard while Pidge utilized her bayard, wrapping the tether part of it around the other guard and electrocuting him.

“Ku! Now!” Pidge called.

“On it.” Kullo ran over to the main computer, starting his work on it. “It’ll probably take a few doboshes; as expected, they’re aiming to keep us out.”

“We should be able to buy you that much time.” Drek confirmed as he kept his eye and blaster on the second entrance while Lance was focused on the first.

As they expected, though, more enemy forces showed up. One of which was a face that wasn’t expected, at least for Kullo. The fuzzy purple Galran was knocked away from the computer by the commander who showed up. He looked up in shock when he saw her.

“Oh quiznak...”

“Ku? You okay?” Pidge asked. She went to Kullo, standing on guard. “Ku?”

“So, this is what the two deserters were up to. As well as Sendak’s prodigy.” the commander stated as she slammed her bladed weapon into the ground. “Kullo… why am I not surprised you’d run away with that questionable friend of yours.” Her eyes darted to Drek who looked nervous. “No matter. Now that this is situated, the traitorous blood will be wiped clean, you will return to training, and the paladins will be sent to the high priestess.”

“Who do you think you are, lady? We’re not going to follow along just because you think you’re so big and tough.” Lance aimed his blaster at the commander, not even caring that other soldiers had theirs on him.

“She’s Commander Pralnok.” Kullo stated, his voice quivering a bit. “She’s… my mother.”

“Oh.” Pidge said. “Quiznak.”

“Yeah...” Kullo didn’t know how to face his mother. He hadn’t seen her in many deca-phoebs, not since before his first time at training camp. She was a skilled warrior and in charge of a base; she didn’t have time to sit around and coddle her children.

“Apprehend them.” Pralnok ordered. The guards were quick to move, grabbing hold of the others. “To think my own flesh and blood would not only abandon his post but also align himself with Voltron while still being utilized by rebel scum. I’m ashamed of you. But also not so surprised. You’ve always been weaker and could hardly make choices on your own.” Ouch. That was harsh.

“Hey! Leave him alone!” Lance snapped. “Just because he’s not what you’d call a _perfect warrior_ doesn’t mean he’s weak!”

Pralnok’s gaze, though hard to tell with the lack of pupils, was directed at the paladin. She went over and gripped his face, just under the visor; she dug her claws in some, piercing the skin a bit. Lance did his best to not appear deterred. “Voltron is soft, even seeing… purpose in someone so weak. This is what will cause your collapse. You’re too compassionate and that will break you. Your ability to care will be your downfall.” The commander shoved him away.

“Commander,” a soldier was checking the data, “those on the ground and fighters are having issues. Not only are three of the lions attacking, but the prisoners are rioting and fighting back.”

“Damn.” Pralnok commented. “Take this group into custody; we’ll take them to the priestess and druids, let them handle things.”

“I don’t think so.” Pidge managed to get loose; the joy of being small, even with being _Sendak’s prodigy_ , she was often underestimated. Pidge got free and was quick to shock the guard who tried to hold her down. She then went at Pralnok, or rather past her. While she would prefer to handle things the technological way, getting into the system and shutting things down, she was content with slamming her bayard into the computer, causing it to short out and shut down, even shutting down much of the base. “Wow, that surprisingly worked.” she declared. She honestly had no idea that it would and was taking a chance; at least it went well.

Pidge was then caught off guard. She was grabbed hold of by Pralnok and thrown to the side. Matt got free and managed to move to catch Pidge, the two colliding to the ground. “You brat!” Pralnak raised her weapon and went at the Holt siblings.

“No!” Kullo was more timid than the others, that was known. He wasn’t exactly strong and he certainly wasn’t a fighter. But he was loyal. And he cared for his friends. They were the family that he loved and that accepted him for who he was. Furry flaws and all.

Perhaps it was the adrenaline, perhaps it was the drive to protect Pidge, but Kullo got away from the guard restraining him, not that the guard did much due to his own reputation of being weaker, and went to Pidge, covering her and Matt both. Pralnok was aiming to bring her weapon down on them, not enough to kill them because of Pidge being there and important to the empire, but it was with force. However, she was a trained warrior and knew how to pull back, keep from actually hitting any of them.

“Kullo! Stand down, now!” Pralnok hissed.

“No, I won’t!” Kullo snapped as he stood up, standing in front of his friends. “I won’t back down just because you tell me to!” He actually glared at her. He was normally soft and sweet, his gazes being happy, caring, or even sad. This time, though, he had a fierce glare. “I don’t care what you think of me, but this is my team. My family. And I’m going to protect them!”

If Pralnok was taken aback by her son yelling at her and defying her, she showed no sign of it. She kept her gaze on her youngest child, keeping watch, waiting for any movement.

“Commander, we’re struggling to hold the base. The planet.” A soldier dared to move closer to Pralnok and whispered to her. “What are your orders?”

Pralnok was silent for a moment, gauging her son’s actions and expressions. She then sighed. “Tell the soldiers to escape. We cannot waste resources here any further.” she ordered.

“We’re running away?” the soldier inquired.

“Some may call it that. But those who depart when they know they’re defeated can stand to fight another day.” Pralnok reminded. “But be aware, Voltron team, the war is not won on your part. We will be victorious yet. And Pidge? You will return to the Empire, whether you like it or not.” She smirked, actually amused a bit, when Pidge hissed at her. The commander then turned away, heading to leave with her soldiers. “And Kullo? I highly disapprove of your traitorous actions and you’re showing to be a disgrace to the empire that you were born to and that raised,” she reminded, “but I am proud that you finally learned to stand up on your own. I just wish you had done that in the name and honour of the Empire.” With that said, the commander walked out, leaving with her soldiers.

Kullo let out a sigh of relief as he fell to his knees. “I never wanna do that again...”

Pidge scooted to her friend and hugged him. “You did well, Ku. You were brave.” She smiled softly. “Thanks.”

“That’s what friends do, we stand up for each other.” Kullo reminded. “You and Drek were always there for me. Now it’s my turn.”  
“When we get back, we’ll relax, play video games, and eat lots of cookies.” Pidge promised. “But first, let’s finish our mission and help those here.”

“I’d like that. Especially cookies.” Kullo hummed. “Maybe Hunk will make a fresh batch and teach me more on baking.”

-+-+-+-

Haggar went to check on Zarkon again, seeing him lying there in a medical bed. No armor, no movement, no sign of waking up. But, from what she could tell, he was not yet dead. “Be strong my emperor, you will recover.” the priestess commented.

**“High Priestess, there is a message for you.”** came a voice over the comm.

“I’ll be there shortly.” Haggar stated. She put a gentle hand on the emperor’s forehead before departing, going to another room to receive the transmission. She was met with the appearance of Pralnok. “What news do you bring?”

**“In order to save resources when we could no longer hold the base, we have abandoned Tuzeon.”** Pralnok informed. **“However, Voltron will most likely remain there for a few quintants at least to get things situated. Among them, of course, is Pidge.”**

“Hmm….” Haggar thought it over. “That is actually good news. Thank you. For now, await new orders.”

**“Yes, ma’am. Vrepit Sa.”**

Haggar cut the communications. “Send me Commander Throk. I have an important mission for him. And… fetch a certain prisoner.” she told a druid who was on standby near her. “It’s time we take back what belongs to the empire.”

-+-+-+-

“Kullo?” Colleen checked in on Kullo later in the quintant. Pidge and Drek had passed out about a varga ago, exhausted from the day, but Kullo remained awake and was helping himself to a snack in the kitchen. “How are you feeling?”

“Hungry.” the fuzzy Galran commented. Though working with the other rebels, Colleen stuck around the castle to be closer to her family and to help look after them. He honestly appreciated it, liking her presence.

“I meant about earlier.” Colleen couldn’t help but chuckle a bit. She went over and leaned against a counter. “The others had me updated. Meeting your mom in our present situation...”

“I mean, it’s not like we were close...” Kullo admitted. “I was mainly raised by others who make it their jobs to look after the children of soldiers who are away…” He didn’t look to Pidge’s mother, doing his best to avoid eye contact. “So I didn’t get any sort of attachment. I mean, the last time I saw her, it was a brief visit and she even told me that she hopes for my sake, I do better with training.”

Colleen moved closer and put a hand on Kullo’s shoulder. Feeling that, the kit’s ears dropped and his face looked sad.

“I wasn’t much… I’m the youngest of my siblings… and the most failed. Everyone else did well in training, are skilled fighters… but I don’t like violence. I like just… sitting and learning. Reading. Programming. Hanging out with my friends...” He let out a soft sigh. “But it still hurts. I mean, I finally did one thing that she could respect… but to her, I’m still a failure and a disgrace...”

“Not all parents are supportive of their children.” Colleen admitted. “I wish they were, but they aren’t.” She then hugged Kullo, holding him close. “But I’m supportive. And you’re now my child. One of my precious baby boys.”

Kullo smiled as he snuggled into Colleen’s hug. He couldn’t recall a time any of his parents hugged him. In fact, the first hug he actually recalled came from Pidge after they became friends; after that, Drek would hug him at times, but Pidge was more eager to hug. He wanted to tell Colleen how much he appreciated that, how happy it was to be part of the family, but he was so pleased, he just cried.

“It’s okay. Go ahead and cry.” Colleen whispered. “After that, let’s get you your snack and then back to bed. It’s been a long day and you need rest, too.” Kullo simply nodded, smiling. Pralnok may have been his mother by genetics and birth, but Colleen was his mother by heart and love. That was enough for him.


	52. It's not about the fanservice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team is still on Tuzeon when some good news comes their way. However good the news is, though, they still have work they must do to ensure the people of that planet are safe and cared for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not exactly a needed warning, but there will be a picture of a shirtless character. Don't worry, he's safe for work.

“You called for me, High Priestess?” Throk inquired. Tall and lanky, like many he towered over the witch. He didn’t particularly like her, but he knew to hold his tongue around her.

“Indeed, surely you remember Pidge?”

“It’s hard to forget that spitfire.” Throk was almost amused. She was an interesting girl and he liked giving her treats when she would visit the command center when she was much younger. Sendak was probably ready to kill him the time she had an allergic reaction to something he gave her. How was he supposed to know she couldn’t consume certain candies?

“She’s on the planet Tuzeon now.” Hagar informed. “I want you to fetch her for me. It’s time she comes home… and remembers where she belongs.”

“Yes, High Priestess.” Throk dipped his head respectfully before departing, leaving the witch alone.

“Soon, little paladin, you’ll be back where you belong.” the witch muttered to herself.

-+-+-+-

“How do you feel?” Ulaz checked over Shiro, making sure his health was doing well.

“A little hazy and light headed, a bit cold, but… I think I’m fine.” Shiro stated. “What all did I miss?”

“Quite a bit. I’m sure Coran can fill you in later.” Allura assured. “But are you sure you’re doing okay?”

“Yeah, the healing pod did wonders.” Shiro nodded. “But me being out for a while...” He looked to see the paladins in front of him. “What about Voltron?”

“It… well...” Allura sighed.

Shiro, who went shirtless while Ulaz did his checks, possible fanservice as Lance explained to Pidge, Drek, and Kullo, looked down at his chest. It was once darker, much like the marks on Pidge and Keith, but it had faded; it was still visible, but it was no longer intense. More than that, there was a jagged line through it, almost like a scar, in the same tones as the rest of his skin.

“Was another paladin found?” Shiro asked.

“The mark… moved to my back.” Keith sighed.

“And mine went to my arm.” Lance informed.

“And one appeared on my leg.” Allura finished.

Shiro stared for a moment before smiling. “I couldn’t have chosen any better.” he stated. He wasn’t upset. He was proud to see how the team was doing. “But you can form Voltron, right?”

“Indeed, we managed to learn.” Allura assured.

“Barely… it was miserable.” Pidge grumbled.

“But um...” Kullo fidgeted a bit, “now what? I mean, Shiro’s okay, he’s awake… but Keith’s now the black paladin...”

“Hey, don’t fret, kiddo.” Shiro smiled brightly, hoping that would calm the timid teen more. “I trained with other things, too. Just because I might not be a paladin anymore doesn’t mean I haven’t any skills to use out here. I can still help out in fights and help work with defenses from the castle. So don’t you worry about me.”

Kullo let out a sigh of relief. He then chuckled when Pidge gently shoved him.

“Remember, Ku, we’re a team. Like hell we’d let Shiro get away from us that easily.” she reminded him, smirking at that.

“Yeah, you’re right.” Kullo rubbed the back of his head as he chuckled.

“Anyway, now that he’s awake and you all got to see him, we still have work to do here.” Kolivan reminded the others. He looked to Ulaz. “You’ll make sure he’s fine?”

“Once he gets a good meal in him and dressed-”

“Way to make me seem like I’m offering fanservice.” Shiro sighed.

“-he should be in top condition.” Ulaz responded.

“Good. Feel free to join us when you’re up to it.” Kolivan informed Shiro. “We’re helping out here on Tuzeon for a while.”

“I’ll try to join you soon.” Shiro nodded.

“So we’re back to work?” Pidge asked. “Hopefully things go well.”

“Hey now, don’t go jinxing us.” Lance teased.

“I meant with people being okay with us. Puig didn’t go well at first and I don’t want a repeat.” Pidge reminded. She then shrugged. “Oh well. We’ll manage.”

-+-+-+-

“Don’t look now, but I think we’re being watched.” Drek whispered to Pidge. He smirked, knowing Pidge definitely would look. And she did.

Pidge observed a small group of children watching the trio of friends closely. They didn’t look afraid, but they definitely seemed timid. She then smiled. “It’s okay, kids. These two aren’t scary. You can come over if you want.” she assured them.

“The scary one is actually Pidge.” Drek motioned to Pidge, getting Kullo to snicker. The kids seemed to converse with each other before going over.

The children were quick to show interest in the trio, not even deterred by the fact that two of them were definitely Galra. If anything, once their timidness faded away, they were curious and even affectionate. Especially with Kullo.

“He’s really soft!” one of the kids standing behind Kullo pointed out, her fingers in his fur around his ears. Another kid sat on his lap as he was on the ground, enjoying being hugged. The group was supposed to be helping with repairs and getting supplies in order, but the youngest trio was distracted with the children. But all was fine.

“He’s smooth.” another chimed as he checked on Drek’s ears. “You’re both Galra. How come you’re all smooth and he’s soft?”

“Well, it’s the same reason why you guys have hair and eye colours.” Drek said. “Genetics and families make us all unique. Some Galra are covered in fur, some are smooth like me, and some are like Pidge, skin and hair on their heads.” He looked to Pidge. “But she’s not Galran. She’s human.”

“Not that it means much other than my health and needs.” Pidge informed. “But no need to worry.” She then felt a child gently touch some of the scarring on her face, namely the one around her eye.

“Did it hurt?” the child asked. “It looks like it did.”

“It did but… it’s healed already, so I’m fine.” She assured.

The child didn’t seem convinced, but he nodded in the end. He then reached up, touching Pidge’s white streak. “Pretty.” he said.

Pidge smiled. For a while, she had hated it. It was tied in with what Haggar did to her, but hearing that a child thought it was pretty made her happy. “Allura’s hair is prettier. It’s all white. And super fluffy.” she informed. “And Shiro’s got some white hair, too. He’s got a poof in the middle.” She pointed on herself where Shiro’s was. “Then there’s Kolivan and Ulaz, they also have white hair...” She paused for a moment. “Wow. White hair is quite the trend in our group.”

“Well yours is pretty.” the kid said.

“Thanks, buddy.” Pidge smiled brightly. Her smile fell, though, when she heard the sound of something entering the atmosphere. “Huh? What’s that?” She nudged the child back as she got up.

“Oh quiznak.” Drek gasped as he and Kullo got up. They saw a few Galran battleships as they came in.

“We need to rejoin the team.” Kullo pointed out.

Pidge grabbed her helmet, which she had on the ground while they chatted with the children, and put it on. “Team, do you copy? We’ve got Galran battleships!”

**“We noticed.”** Shiro stated. **“Paladins, get back to the castle and get the lions! We can’t let them reclaim Tuzeon!”**

“On it!” Pidge confirmed. “You kids get back ho-whoa!” Pidge grabbed two of them by the arms and pulled them closer. A few fighters flew in low and shot around them. More fighters were near, circling around in the skies.

“Shit! We need to take cover instead.” Drek was quick to pick up a couple of the smaller kids, one under each arm. “Over there!” There were trees and large boulders not too far from them and he dashed toward them, seeking shelter there. Kullo and Pidge followed suit, making sure all the kids were with them and safe.

“Is it Sendak?” Kullo asked, holding onto one of the younger children who started to cry, the little tyke terrified.

“I don’t think so… my gut tells me it’s not him.” Pidge responded. “But I’m certain that they’re targeting me.” She tapped into the comm again. “Shiro? We’ve got a problem. We’re pinned; we’ve got fighters on us. We’re taking shelter now but...” She looked to the children. “We have children with us.”

**“Can you hold your position, guys? We’ll get help to you ASAP.”** Shiro assured.

“Yeah, we’ve got thi-”

“Where’s Dhalni?” one of the kids asked.

“What?” Pidge looked alarmed and looked around. One of the kids were missing. “Oh quiznak… where… where...” She looked to the other side of the clearing, seeing one of the younger kids hiding in the bushes to the best of her ability; her ability was pretty good since Pidge almost didn’t see her. She moved to try and run over but stopped when the fighters started shooting again.

“We can’t get to her or bring her here without anyone getting hurt.” Kullo pointed out.

“Yeah, I noticed.” Pidge nodded. “Dhalni, do you hear me?” She did her best to call over without getting too loud. The child nodded. “Just stay put; we’ll get to you as soon as we can.” The little girl was on the verge of tears, but she still nodded, trusting Team Voltron with the situation and her safety.

Pidge kept an eye on their surroundings, seeing the ships circling them. They were just waiting for them to move. To shoot and kill? She somehow doubted that was their full intention. The enemy was trying to keep them pinned. For what? If she had to guess, then she was certain it was so somebody could capture her.

Part of her was tempted to take off running, lure the ships away, but she didn’t want to pull a similar move that she got after Allura for a while back. She had to figure something out, though. She then noticed a transport ship land nearby. She recognized who the commander was, flanked by sentries and soldiers.

“Throk.” Pidge grumbled.

“I know you’re hiding over there, Pidge.” Throk called. “Why don’t you make this easier on all of us. On those little ones you’re hiding with. Just turn yourself over.”

“Like hell I will, equitonessente!” Pidge shouted back.

“Pidge!” Drek hissed as he covered one of the kids’ ears while Kullo covered his mouth in shock.

“What? Sendak’s not here to reprimand me for it. And Throk deserves to be called that; he had sentries shoot at a bunch of kids. Us included.” Pidge shrugged. “Fine.” She groaned. “I take it back. You sona-ilizate! Not to insult your mother.”

“I see you’re as feisty as usual.” Throk mused. “But be reasonable, Pidge. This will go easier if you comply.” He motioned to a soldier who moved away.

“Easier for who? Me or you?” Pidge responded.

“Hmm, for everyone Even this little one.”

Pidge jolted when she heard a squeal. She checked, realizing they found and captured Dhalni, the soldier holding her by her hands, keeping her off the ground. “No...”

“You want her safe, then I suggest you turn yourself over.” Throk commented.

“Pidge, you can’t; they’re just going to take you to Haggar.” Kullo reminded.

“I know…” Pidge confirmed. She looked alarmed when she heard Dhalni cry out. Checking, she saw that Throk had taken hold of her, his grip on the back of her neck, threatening her safety even further. Pidge was devastated. If she didn’t act soon…

“Team, what’s your status?” Pidge asked.

**“We’re doing what we can, but these guys came prepared with plenty of power behind their attacks.”** Lance responded.

**“Are you able to hold out longer, Pidge?”** Keith asked.

Pidge gulped. “Yeah.” she lied. She then cut her comm.

“Pidge?” Kullo looked worried. “Pidge, don’t.”

“I’m not afraid of Haggar… and I’m not about to let Throk hurt anyone.” Pidge’s tone was firm. Her eyes then softened as she hugged her friends. “Keep the kids safe. I’ll do what I can from my end but...”

“Pidge, you can’t.” Drek hissed. “You fought with Allura about this and what if we...”

“I’ll be fine…” Pidge tried to assure. “Besides, this isn’t like with Allura. We were paladins. A team. But these children...” She nodded and got up. “Hear me out, Throk!” she called. “If I return with you to Central Command, you leave these people alone. You leave this planet and you even let the child go.”

Throk smirked as he set the girl down, his hand still around her neck. “You come over here, and I’ll release her.” he responded. “And when we depart, my fleet will leave with us.”

Pidge nodded. “You guys can scold me later for this, I’ll even sit through Allura getting after me.” she informed her friends. She then left their sheltered area, walking over. “But don’t think I won’t fight back while locked up.” she informed the commander.

“I’d be disappointed if you didn’t.” Throk admitted. He looked to a guard who restrained Pidge, putting cuffs on her with her hands behind her back. The commander himself let go of Dhalni and patted her back. “Go along, child, go back to the others.”

Dhalni was frozen in place. She then looked to Pidge. “Go on. It’ll be fine.” the paladin assured. Dhalni nodded before taking off, running towards the others, Drek emerging to pull her in close. “Remember the deal.”

“Of course. I’m a Galra of my word. I may be a warrior, but I like to think I’m honourable.” Throk informed. He smirked at the others. “Even your traitorous friends will be left alone.” He then pushed Pidge along, getting her to the transport ship.

-+-+-+-

“I don’t get it,” Keith said from his lion, “they’re retreating.”

**“Hah! I guess they were too afraid of Voltron!”** Lance declared.

**“But… we didn’t even get to form Voltron. Only four of us are out.”** Hunk reminded.

**“Who cares, we win today and Tuzeon is safe.”**

**“Guys, do you copy?”**

“Drek? What’s your status?” Keith asked. “Are the kids safe?”

**“It’s Pidge.”** Drek said. **“To save us and the kids we were with, she turned herself over to Commander Throk; she’s being taken back to Haggar!”**

Keith’s eyes widened. “Oh no….”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember, the title says that it's not about the offered fanservice you guys got.  
> Anyway! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Hopefully things go well for our Voltron friends.  
> Until next time!


	53. Pet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team needs to come up with a plan so they could help Pidge before it's too late. Meanwhile, Haggar has a plan up her sleeve to make the green paladin break and finally submit.

“What do you mean she’s being taken to Haggar?” The group was back in the castle and Keith was fuming. Worse, he was taking it out on Drek. “Why didn’t you stop her? Why didn’t you help her!?”

“Keith, that’s enough, this isn’t Drek’s fault.” Shiro reminded, though it didn’t get Keith to back down.

“They’re a team! They’re supposed to have each others’ backs!” Keith snapped, his attention on the former paladin.

“You think I didn’t try?” Drek asked; he did his best to hide the hurt on his face, it it still showed through. “I didn’t want her to go, but she still did. We weren’t in a situation where we could fight back; the children we were with could have been killed.” He bit his lip some, his fang nearly piercing the skin. “We were pinned… there was no way out… Pidge… made the decision so that we could have minimal casualties...”

“It’s okay, Drek.” Allura put her hand on his shoulder, giving it a comforting squeeze. “It’s not your fault and you did your best…”

“What’s done is done.” Shiro reminded everyone. “Right now we need to figure out rescuing Pidge.”

“But with her gone, we can’t form Voltron… and she’ll be taken to the main fleet, right?” Hunk asked. “How do we do this?”

“Hope she’s strong enough to withstand Haggar’s magic.” Haxus spoke up. “And come up with a plan to sneak in and get her.”

“We need to work on this quick, guys, so let’s get to it.” Shiro told the team.

-+-+-+-

Commander Throk made it a point to get back to the main fleet as quickly as possible; the less time wasted, the lower the chances of Pidge getting away. Not that she could do much with how retrained he had her; he knew better than to underestimate the petite paladin. He had her fully shackled and brought to Haggar.

“Good work, Commander Throk.” Haggar praised. She went over to them, gently reaching up to put her hand to Pidge’s face. The paladin tried to turn away from her, but she wasn’t able to move more than a couple of inches. “It’s good to have you back, Pidge.”

“Piss off.”

“Defiant, I see.” Haggar sighed. “But we will work that out of you. You will once again be back where you belong, fight for the empire that raised you.” She motioned for sentries to move in and take hold of the paladin, taking her from Throk. “You may return to your duties, Commander Throk; I have this handled.”

“Of course.” Throk dipped his head in respect for leaving, letting Haggar handle the little spitfire.

Haggar had Pidge escorted elsewhere and placed in a new outfit, stripped of her armor. She was put in a jumpsuit of sorts with silver boots; on the front of her outfit was the same emblem on Haggar’s hood. She remembered wearing such an outfit during most of her times with Haggar; looking back, it felt like the outfit meant she belonged to Haggar, she was nothing but a test subject to the witch.

“You may have me physically,” Pidge hissed as she was restrained again, “but you won’t break me!” She pulled against the sentry holding onto her. “You have no power over me!”

“Oh my dear, you have no idea just how much power I have. Especially over you.” Haggar gently touched Pidge’s cheek, pulling away before the paladin could bite her. She then motioned for the sentry to follow, bringing Pidge along. “Those other paladins you call your _team_ have done quite a bit of damage.” She didn’t look to see the smug look on the small girl’s face.

Haggar led the way to another room. Inside, Pidge got to see the work done by her and her team. Shiro definitely wasn’t the only one who was down for a while; the difference was that while Shiro finally woke up, Zarkon was as still as ever, hardly seeming to breathe. Staring at her former emperor, Pidge didn’t feel much. This was the man who had been conquering the universe for too long, destroying lives, enslaving others.

“If you’re expecting me to grieve, you’re sorely mistaken.” Pidge commented. “He’s done nothing but torment others. We did our job to help the universe; he got what he deserved.”

Haggar scowled. She then reached around and grabbed Pidge by the back of her hair, yanking her head back. “This is your emperor you speak about. The man who has offered you a great chance in life. A wonderful position in the empire.”

“He offered me nothing! It was fate that paired me with the green lion!” Pidge snapped back. She knew better than to pull away; Haggar had a grip on her hair and pulling away would hurt.

“He spared your life; you owe him that much in return.” the witch reminded the paladin. She let go. “He even spared the life of your father. That man. Sam, was it?”

Pidge’s eyes widened. She knew that name. The name of her father. She did her best to hide her emotions, but Haggar saw right through her.

“Perhaps meeting him instead will help.” Haggar smirked a bit. She walked to the door and had the sentry follow her. She led them along the halls until they reached the cells. She had one cell opened up before having Pidge shoved in, the paladin falling to her knees. “Get along well; I’ll be back before long.”

Pidge glared at the door as it slid shut, locking her in. Had it been any other prison she was in, she would probably be able to find her way out, but the main fleet’s flagship was not like any other ship or prison. “Great…” she grumbled. She then looked over when mumbling caught her attention. She stopped when she saw a human sitting in the corner, seeming to come to. Was he knocked out? Or perhaps just worn out and dared to rest a bit.

“Huh?” The human sat up more before shuffling. “Who’s there?” he demanded as he quickly got to his feet. He squinted, trying to see the other more. “Wait… Matt? How’s that poss… no...” He stepped forward, showing himself more. “Katie?”

Pidge hitched her breath a bit. That name. She knew it thanks to the others, especially Matt. It was her name. The name she had before becoming part of the empire. “Then you must be… you must Sam… my… my father?”

Sam’s weathered eyes were soft. He stepped closer, taking in Pidge’s appearance. The paw mark on her shoulder was even further proof of who she was. “It… it really is you. You’re okay. You’re… you’re…” He couldn’t resist. While Colleen managed to hold back until Pidge was ready, Sam couldn’t. He was quick to hug Pidge. “Oh how I’ve longed to see you. I wish the circumstances were better but...”

Pidge was shocked at first, but she then found herself smiling. More than that, she felt the tears well up and begin to fall down her face. “I’m here. And I finally get to meet you.” she whispered as she returned the hug. “I get to meet you. Dad.”

“Oh Katie...” Sam couldn’t help but start to cry. He had spent so long as a prisoner, but every day he dreamed of meeting his daughter.

“C-c’mon… let’s sit down.” Pidge pulled away some. “I… I think we have a lot to chat about.” She went to a wall and sat down, her father joining her. “And… I mean, I don’t mind being called Katie, but I’ve been called Pidge all this time.”

“Pidge.” Sam tested the name out. “Sounds nice.” He put his arm around his daughter. “I missed out on a lot. So, care to catch me up?”

“Where do I begin?” Pidge asked. “I mean, there’s Papa taking care of me, he’s actually a Blade, I have a couple of friends, I met the other paladins, met my brother… we found Mom, too.”

“Matt’s out here too? And… Colleen? She’s… okay?” Sam was stunned.

“Matt’s with the other paladins. And Mom is a rebel; she’s been working with us since we met.” Pidge explained. “There’s just so much to tell.”

“Well, start with these friends; I’d like to hear about them.”

“Drek and Kullo. We didn’t get along at first, but we found our common ground and we’re practically inseparable.”

Pidge did her best to catch Sam up on everything. A voice in the back of her mind nagged at her, telling her that this was part of Haggar’s plan, but the paladin was so happy to find him alive and mostly well, save from the lack of nourishment and the bruises, she couldn’t help herself. She even told him about Haxus, how he had done so much to care for her.

“I’d like to meet this Haxus fellow.” Sam said. “Give him my thanks. He raised you so well.”

Pidge smiled. “You’ll meet him. If I have any say in it, Dad, you’ll meet Papa.” She wanted to talk about Sendak, too, though their relationship was strained, she still had some good memories of him. Perhaps, she figured, she would one day talk about Sendak with Sam.

“I have no doubt.” Sam nodded in agreement. He then looked up when the doors slid open and sentries stood there as well as a druid. He wanted to protect his daughter, but she moved first, getting in front of him.

“Haggar has called for you.” the druid informed.

“The witch can drop dead!” Pidge hissed.

“I wouldn’t be so defiant if I were you.” The druid motioned a bit and the sentries pointed blasters at them, primarily at Sam. Pidge bit her lip. “If you don’t want him hurt… or worse, then I suggest complying.”

Pidge glanced at her father. He endured so much already, she didn’t want him to be hurt, especially because of her. “Fine. Just leave him alone.” She got up and stepped away. She was restrained by a sentry as another went over and pulled Sam to his feet. “I said to leave him alone!”

“Haggar wants the both of you.” the druid informed. The druid then walked off, guiding the others to one of Haggar’s labs. There, the witch herself was waiting with a few more druids.

“Good, you came.” Haggar stated as she stepped over.

“Not exactly willingly.” Pidge grumbled.

“Well hopefully you’ll be willing for this.” The witch smiled a bit. “Remember, you are part of this empire. And in the end, you will return.”

“I already told you that you won’t break me.” Pidge reminded.

“That is where you’re wrong, child.” Haggar rasped, gently touching Pidge’s cheek. “You’re already broken. You’re too compassionate and that is what has you broken.” She smirked as she waved to one of the druids. With a subtle nod, the masked figured extended their hand towards Sam. Then came the attack.

Sam gave a cry of pain as he was hit with a sort of electricity, causing him to collapse to the floor. Pidge gave a startled and worried shout, but couldn’t go to him. The druid gave another shock, Sam crying out again as he writhed.

“No! Stop it! Leave him alone!” Pidge struggled against the sentry holding her back. Another shock. “Stop, Haggar! Please!”

“You know how to stop this.” Haggar pointed out. “Submit to your role within the empire and he will be left alone.”

“If I do that, how would I know that you won’t just kill him after?” Pidge cried out. She hated that she actually cried in front of Zarkon’s witch, but she was afraid for her father. She only just met him and she wanted to protect him so much.

“I swear to you, you submit and return to the empire, he will be left alone. A prisoner, but safe.” Haggar assured.

Pidge bit her lip as she looked to Sam. He was barely managing to put his head up to look back. “Don’t do it, Pidge. Don’t give in...” Sam managed to utter. The words were strained and he was in pain, but he didn’t want Pidge to surrender.

Pidge pulled some. “Let… let me talk with him… please?” she asked.

“Don’t try anything foolish if you know what’s good.” Haggar motioned for the sentry to let go of the paladin. Once free, Pidge staggered over. She then collapsed to her knees in front of Sam.

“Dad… I’m sorry.” Pidge whispered. “But I can’t let you be hurt or worse… you’re alive. There’s a chance you can return to Matt and Mom… see the paladins...”

“Pidge, don’t do this…” Sam pleaded. “You’re finally free of the empire...”

“What the use of being free from this if you’ll end up dead?” Pidge gave a forced smile before she moved in closer, hugging her father. “Be strong. I’m sure the others will find and rescue you.”

“No… no...” Sam shook his head. He was then pulled away by the sentries. “Don’t hurt her. Please? Don’t hurt my baby...”

“She’s made her choice.” Haggar pointed out. “Take him back to his cell.” The sentries obliged and dragged Sam away, the father calling out for his daughter. The witch then knelt before Pidge and gently lifted her chin up so the girl looked up at her. “Remember, Pidge, no matter what, you belong here.”

Pidge stared at Haggar, the tears rolling down her face. She was afraid. She kept telling herself not to be, but she was, she was absolutely terrified. She was trapped and she couldn’t free herself without risking her father’s safety.

_Guys… I’m so very sorry._ Pidge thought to herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well. How's that for some damage, huh?  
> I originally didn't know what I was gonna name this chapter, then the song "Pet" by A Perfect Circle popped up on my playlist and I knew that I had to do that. It just felt right.  
> Anyway! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and look forward to the next.  
> Until next time!


	54. Finding Pidge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team knows it's a risk to go head-on into the Empire's flagship of the main fleet, but in order to help Pidge, they know they have no choice.

“You’re tense.” Haggar sighed. “I know this must be frightening, but when it’s all over, you won’t even remember any discomfort you’d go through.” She gently touched Pidge’s face as the girl was strapped to a worktable, the surface tilted so she was almost upright. Pidge had something in her mouth, allowing her to bite on it instead of her tongue. Or perhaps it was to keep her from screaming. “You won’t remember anything, actually, except for your loyalty to your emperor.”

Pidge let out a muffled whimper. Though she surrendered for Sam’s safety, she was still terrified. She couldn’t relax. She looked away to the best of her ability as the tears fell.

“Oh my dear, it will be over soon.” Haggar promised. Her voice may have been soft and sweet, almost like a mother’s voice, but Haggar was no mother, especially to Pidge. The witch went over to some canisters of glowing substance. There was another canister with an ominous shadow bouncing around in it. “Now, try to relax, it will hurt less if you do.”

Pidge flared her nostrils. She then felt pain course into as the witch began whatever procedure she had planned. Once the pain started, as much as possible, she arched her back. She tried to scream around the gag in her mouth, the sound muffled. But in her mind, it was pain filled, high pitched, and terrified.

-+-+-+-

“Colleen, are you sure about this?” Kolivan asked, seeing the rebel get ready.

“My daughter is in danger and time is running out.” Colleen looked to the Marmora member, her brown eyes nearly hostile. “If you think I’m going to abandon my daughter, then you’re wrong.”

“I’m not expecting you to abandon her, but this is the stronghold of the empire.”

“I’ve survived war all this time. I can handle these bastards now for the sake of my little Pidge.”

“Then I won’t stand in your way.” Kolivan nodded. As much as he wanted her to remain, her emotions holding the potential of making her careless, he knew better than to actually stop a mother trying to protect her child. He sighed. “We’ll be taking a risk going in as quickly as we plan. But we don’t have time to come up with a full plan to sneak in… we’ll need to go head on and be quick. For now, we should avoid using the black lion. Just in case.” The others were in agreement to that. “The yellow and blue lions are bigger than the red lion and much stronger.”

“There’s an area on the ship that should be easy for us to ram into and break so we can get in.” Hunk commented. “I did that when we went to rescue Allura a while back.”

“Then we need to get going.” Krolia said. “Shiro? Are you sure you’re up to it?”

“Pidge is part of this team; like hell I’m going to stand by and not help out.” Shiro confirmed.

“Then let’s go.” Kolivan said.

With Allura and Hunk using the blue and yellow lions, they launched from the castle. They had no doubt that they would be detected ahead of time, even with using a wormhole so suddenly, but they were surprised to find they weren’t being attacked right away. This made them suspicious. They knew they had to be on guard.

Once they had their openings, they departed. “Coran, are you able to pick up on Pidge’s biorhythm?” Allura asked.

 **“Well, that’s the thing; I’m picking up on two Earthling biorhythms.”** Coran informed. **“Both are relatively near your locations, but one is especially close.”**

“One is probably Pidge, but who...” Keith shook his head. “We’ll find out soon. Let’s get moving.” He led the way out of their first hallway. Looking around, he wondered where they were. “Any ideas on where we are in the ship?”

“Cell holding.” Colleen responded. “They’re the closest ones to that damn witch’s lab.” She remembered being held there. Locked in a cell for some time and then dragged out, taken to the lab for interrogation.

“Huh?” A voice echoed from one of the cells. “Colleen? Is that you?”

The others were alerted to the voice. It may have been years, but Colleen especially recognized it. “Sam?” She ran to one of the cells, the others right behind her, keeping an eye on their surroundings. She then found the cell he was in. “Sam!”

“Colleen! It really is you!” Sam ran to the door, looking out through the small window. “I was told you escaped. Pidge told me… but to see you here...” His eyes were soft, happy to see his wife again but sad to see the scarring she had suffered. He then looked worried. “Pidge. She’s in danger. To protect me, she surrendered herself to Haggar.”

“Oh no...” Colleen looked worried. She then glanced to Kullo. “Can we get the cell opened?”

“It won’t take a standard hand of a Galran, but I can crack this.” Kullo responded, poking away at the control panel. It didn’t take him long to break the lock, the cell door sliding open. He looked up from his crouched position, smiling at the couple hugging each other.

“We need to get Sam back to the lions. The castle if possible… but...” Kolivan knew no one wanted to back out of things fully, especially the paladins.

Kullo sighed. He wanted to help get Pidge back, but he knew he would only get in the way if they had to fight for her. “Every ship, Zarkon’s included, has escape pods that are easy to access. They shouldn’t be too far...” he said. “I can get him there and take him back to the castle.”

“You can’t go alone, though.” Colleen pointed out. She grumbled. “I’ll go with.”

“Krolia, you go with the others and find Pidge; I’ll make sure Sam is taken back to the castle and cared for; if possible, we’ll come back and aid you all.” Kolivan stated. “Do your best out there.”

“We’ll get Pidge back, don’t you worry.” Krolia nodded. With the plan in motion, the group split off, Kullo leading one group to the escape pods and Keith leading the other group in search of Pidge, listening to Coran doing his best to lead them to where her biorhythm was.

“Something doesn’t seem right.” Drek checked his data, able to get basic schematics from Haxus earlier. “There’s a larger room up ahead, but it’s sounding like Pidge should be in there according to Coran...”

“They probably laid a trap for us.” Krolia pointed out.

“We can’t back down from that though.” Keith stated.

“I know; we need to be on guard, though.” Krolia confirmed.

Keith nodded. He then got the doors opened and slipped in. Looking around, the lights were dimmed and there were no signs of anyone being there. Walking in further, he was left confused. “I don’t get it. Coran, didn’t you say Pidge was in here?”

 **“Her signal is right on top of you guys, so yes, she should be there.”** Coran assured.

“But Coran,” Allura looked around, seeing no signs of anyone, biological or mechanical, around, “there’s no one here except us.” She listened to static. “Coran? Coran, are you there?”

“Did we lose communications?” Lance asked.

“I don’t like the sounds of this...” Hunk mumbled. He yelped when the lights suddenly turned on, but there still wasn’t an ambush waiting for them.

“Everyone be on guard.” Shiro ordered, bracing himself with a sword from the Altean armory.

Matt held a staff he was using, ready to strike at any opponent who dared to attack. He then looked up, noticing that the room was not only large in the floor area but also in height. It looked like others could sit above and observe anything happening below. A personal arena perhaps? But more than that he noticed a lone figure standing there and dressed in Galran armor. The figure stood out with the striking white hair and at first Matt didn’t recognize who that was.

Then the figure jumped down, jamming a weapon into the wall to slow their descent to the floor. Seeing the figure, Matt was left in shock.

“Pidge...” he gasped out. The others saw her and were just as surprised. They were stunned to see that her hair had completely turned white, but they were happy to see Pidge nonetheless. Except for Krolia and Drek. The two already knew that something was wrong.

“Pidge, you’re okay!” Matt cheered. He moved forward to go to her.

“Matt! Get back!” Krolia went to yank him back by his uniform but she didn’t get the chance to before Pidge fired her weapon at him, the hookshot end going past and slicing at his cheek a bit. This startled Matt and he stumbled to the side.

“Wait… what happened? Pidge?” Lance looked worried. “Pidge! Don’t you recognize us?”

“She doesn’t, not right now.” Drek told the other. “Haggar has control...” Hearing the words said aloud, the others were worried for their friend, mentally praying they could help her.

“Looks like you guys brought the lions back to the Empire where they belong.” Pidge commented, recalling her bayard. She held her arm out, letting it change form, turning into a sort of short blade, one that was similar to what many soldiers used for a quick melee weapon. “My emperor will be most pleased to know this when he awakens.” She then braced herself, ready to fight. “He would be even more proud once I destroy those who dare to stand against him.”


	55. A Bad Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The others have to fight Pidge, hope to help her out of there and back to as normal as possible. But with Haggar in control, taking Pidge is easier said than done.   
> If anyone were to say they were going to have a bad day, that'd be the understatement of the millennium.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning:   
> This chapter is angstier and more violent. But it is relatively important to the fic. So, I thought I'd warn you.

“Pidge? What’s going on with you!?” Allura demanded. She was worried. She feared the worst. Sam had warned them that Pidge had surrendered to Haggar in order to keep him safe. “Please… this can’t be right. You can’t be with them...”

Pidge didn’t respond. Instead, she ran at them. The gaze in her eyes were firm; she did not appear like she was going to back down. Seeing this, Drek moved to clash with her first, trying to stop her; he had the most experience fighting Pidge and knew, for the most part, how to block.

“Pidge, you need to come to your senses! This isn’t you!” Drek tried to get her to see reason, but his words fell on deaf ears. Her pupils, which had turned purple, showed no sign that she registered what he said. “Please, Pidge… please...”

Once more, she gave no response. She shifted her position to slash at Drek, trying to harm him. He did well to try and dodge her before stealing a glance to the others. Most of the team was shocked. They had grown so attached to Pidge, they couldn’t bring themselves to attack their friend, even if she was currently the enemy.

At least Krolia didn’t falter. While two on one wasn’t fair, they didn’t care for the time being. Stopping Pidge and trying to get her to return to her senses was their priority. Pidge noticed this and was quick to evaluate the situation. Due to experience and skill, Krolia was the greater threat to her current alliance. She was quick to turn on the Blade and go after her.

With Pidge’s back turned to Drek, the blue skinned Galran decided to try and jump his friend behind, attempting to hold her down. Pidge didn’t even stop to struggle; she knew how to get out of there. She managed to thrust her legs and hips upward and pivot herself over Drek’s body, actually catching Krolia off guard and kicking her in the face. Once behind Drek, she broke his hold and shifted her bayard’s form once more. It took on the small katar-like style and she jammed it into her friend’s side. Stronger than usual, she gave him a painful shock that made him scream out in true pain before he collapsed, twitching in discomfort with electricity coursing through him. When she pulled the blade back, it dripped with his blood, the blue colour glistening in the lighting.

Krolia was a skilled warrior. She had years upon years of experience. But seeing Drek taken down like that, she made a mistake. She faltered. And Pidge took advantage of that and went at her once more, doing the same to the Blade. While Krolia didn’t fully collapse, she fell to one knee as she was electrocuted.

“Mom!” Keith shouted. He didn’t want to hurt Pidge, but seeing Drek bleeding and his mother in pain, that was the motivation he needed. That was the motivation anyone needed. Except for Matt. He was too startled to go after Pidge. He didn’t want to hurt his sister.

Lance shot towards Pidge. He didn’t actually want to hit her, but the shots were enough to make her back away from Krolia before she could cause any further damage. With Pidge away from the other Galran, Keith ran at her, the black bayard in its sword form. Seeing this, Pidge met him with her weapon taking on a sword form.

“Pidge, this isn’t you. You’re a paladin of Voltron!” Keith tried to get her attention.

“I already know that.” Pidge slashed at Keith, making him back off. But it didn’t last long since he went in to stop her once more, their swords clashing.

“You’re our ally, though!”

“I fight in the name of the Galran Empire!” Pidge bit out. “Victory or death!” She glanced to see Shiro come at her from the side, sword in hand. She ducked down and rolled to the side, dodging his strike. She was forced to keep dodging though as Lance kept shooting towards her, making her back off further.

Threat. High priority. While Keith and Shiro were skilled swordsmen, Lance was a persistent sharpshooter. She ran at him, dodging his line of fire. She had the bayard back into it’s hookshot form and took to shooting it at him, causing its tether to wrap around the red paladin. She gave him a good shock, more painful than the one she gave him when they first received their bayards. She recalled it and had it in a smaller blade form.

When she was right in front of him, she slammed the bayard into his visor with enough force that she actually broke it, the weapon going through and catching his face. Feeling her bayard, Lance let out a cry of pain.

“Lance!” Hunk got his nerve back and was worried for his best friend. Before Pidge could deliver a shock of electricity to Lance’s face, the larger paladin shot at Pidge, the petite girl barely dodging. She hissed in pain as one energy projectile grazed her side.

“Hmm. Looks like you’re the only one to actually hit me.” Pidge smirked a bit, recovering from the initial shock of pain. She paid no mind to the injury bleeding and instead ran towards Hunk. Shiro, though, wasn’t going to have that and met her in combat. “Fine, if you’re that eager to die.” Pidge shifted the bayard into its sword form once more. She then engaged the former paladin in battle.

“Lance!” Keith wanted to help Shiro, but he saw Lance on his hands and knees, blood hitting the floor.

“I’ve got Lance, you try to get Pidge pinned!” Allura called. While the others were fighting, she had initially checked on Krolia and Drek. With Krolia stabilized, the blade stayed with Drek, applying pressure to his wound. Allura went to Lance and checked on him. “Lance, I know it hurts, but you need to let me check that.”

“Don’t. We need to stop Pidge.” Lance gasped out. He tried to get up, but his whole body trembled.

“You’re in no condition.” the princess reminded.

“But Pidge...” Lance had his helmet removed so he could cover the wound on his face, blood still flowing. He looked to Pidge, sadness in his visible eye. “She’s… hurting too. I’m sure of it...”

“We’ll help her, but if you don’t settle down, you could bleed to death.” Allura reminded. “Matt? Matt! I need your help here.” Matt wasn’t responding. He was left in a stupor, unable to react. Allura wished he would, but he was as still as grave. In the end, she didn’t blame him. If she had to face her father in person and he had been corrupted and controlled, she wouldn’t be any better in terms of responding to the attack.

Meanwhile, Pidge was caught in fighting the two swordsmen, trying her best to fight them both. She got away briefly and gauged her next attack and who to perform it on. Nodding, she went back to the hookshot.

Keith was not enjoying the constant weapon shift. It was impressive that Pidge was so versatile, but it made judging her techniques and plans that much harder. The next problem? She was brilliant and good at learning others’ weaknesses. Some of what made Pidge an amazing ally made her a dangerous and tricky enemy.

Then she shot her bayard at Shiro though she caught him by the legs instead. Keith didn’t know she was aiming at the former paladin, she moved too quickly for him to fully judge, so he dodged to the side. He then noticed that Pidge snagged Shiro. A shock and tug, the bi-colour haired man fell to the floor. When Pidge recalled her bayard, she formed it into a different weapon this time.

An ax of sorts. Pidge went at Shiro and brought it down on him with enough force, letting its weight cause more damage than her own strength.

“NO!” Keith got up, eyes wide. He couldn’t move in time, forced to see the weapon slam down on Shiro’s right arm, severing it just below the shoulder. Shiro let out a pained scream. Keith saw red at first, unsure if that was just Shiro’s blood or his own rage filling inside him. But then he saw Pidge’s eyes. They seemed to flicker. He noticed that her purple pupils, which glowed some, turned to the usual black that they should have been. They were back to purple in almost an instant, but Keith knew what he saw.

“Hunk! Try to stop Shiro’s bleeding!” Keith called out as he ran at Pidge again, keeping her back in a fight.

“Right!” Hunk was terrified, nothing was going right, but he wanted to help the team. He went over and did his best to cover Shiro’s arm. “It’s okay, Shiro, we’ll get this taken care of. Just try to stay awake.”

“Hurts… Adam...” Shiro whimpered. He wasn’t yet delirious, but he was afraid. He feared he would die there and never see Adam again.

“We’ll get through this.” Hunk assured. “You’ll go home. You’ll see Adam. You’ll be okay.” He hoped that was true. Tears fell down his face. He didn’t know how true it was; Shiro was bleeding out and if they didn’t get any treatment, they would truly lose him. “Just hang on buddy… Hang on Shiro...”

Pidge kept fighting Keith, even attacking his helmet. His visor cracked and made it tricky to see past properly. He dared to remove the full thing. It was risky, but without it he saw properly. Pidge, though, managed to attack his face. It wasn’t as bad as Lances, which Keith could only assume was pretty bad, but it definitely hurt. On the right side of his face, a decently sized gash was formed. It mirrored one of the marks on his mother’s face some, but damn it hurt.

“Shit!” Keith hissed. He then felt a knee to the groin. A skilled warrior… and a cheap shot. It was effective though. He doubled over in pain.

Pidge’s gaze then returned to Hunk. She darted for him and caught him by surprise. She kicked him in the head, startling him and getting him off balance, even as he was on his knees. He fell to the side and fumbled some, knocking his bayard away and causing it to slide across the floor. Seeing it, Hunk was worried.

The yellow paladin did his best to go after it, but Pidge was faster. Before his left hand could reach the weapon, before his fingers could even touch it, he felt a sharp pain in his hand. He let out a cry as Pidge drove her bayard in sword form down through him, piercing the body armor that covered his skin. The angle wasn’t enough to sever his hand, but the weapon went right through.

“Given your circumstance, it’s best you give up. Perhaps in doing so, the empire will show mercy and spare your life.” Pidge commented. “Who knows. Maybe Emperor Zarkon will even allow you to continue to be the yellow paladin if you swear your undying loyalty to him.”

“My loyalty belongs to my friends, Pidge.” Hunk whimpered. He then looked up at her. “And to you. You’re my friend, Pidge. Please… please come to your senses. This isn’t you. This is that witch’s doing.” He watched Pidge’s face, trying to gauge her expression. “Pidge, you’re stronger than this. You’re stronger than that damned witch. You’re better than this.” He tried not to cry, but he couldn’t help it. More than the pain he felt, he was sad for Pidge. He was sad that she was probably alone in her mind, struggling to reclaim herself. “Remember the team. Your friends. Sitting with me in the kitchen while I cook, playing video games with Drek and Kullo. Training with Shiro and Keith. Getting to know your family.”

Pidge’s eyes showed she faltered some. She pulled her weapon free and staggered back. “Stop… knock it off!” she cried out, dropping her bayard, causing it to return to its default form. She then clutched her head, pain filling her as a part of her mind tried to fight back, tried to take control.

“Those headaches...” Allura observed Pidge’s reaction. “She’s breaking…” She nodded. “Keith!” She only needed to say his name and the black paladin knew just what to do. The half-Galran went at Pidge, tackling her to the ground. Allura ran over and held onto Pidge’s head. “Matt! We need help keeping her down!”

Matt almost didn’t register the Altean’s words, but he finally did. He finally pulled himself free from his shocked state. He first looked to the others, seeing their states. Blood. A lot of blood. Pidge had caused a lot of damage. But it wasn’t her fault. Haggar had been corrupting her and had her under control.

“MATT!”

Allura shouting his name again did the trick. He got up and ran over, quick to assist Keith in pinning Pidge down. The green paladin struggled and screamed. “She’s in pain… Allura...”

“That’s it. I finally see it.” Allura nodded. “Haggar must have been filling her with corrupted quintessence. And something else strange.”

“Can you do something about it?” Keith inquired. “Or a healing pod?  
“I think I can expel it.” Allura nodded. She then focused her own quintessence. She focused on trying to help Pidge remove the corrupted quintessence that filed her. “Please, Pidge, let me into your mind. Let me help you.”

Pidge screamed as she tried to struggle, but her movements became more feeble. She was tired. She hurt. She just wanted to rest. “Let me go… let me go...” she whispered.

“We’re not letting you go until you’re safe.” Matt bit out.

“It hurts… I’m tired...” she whimpered.

Matt nodded. “I understand, but you need to hang on.” he told his sister. “You’re the strongest person I know, Pidge… you will make it. Just don’t fight Allura. She’s going to help you...”

“Allura...” Pidge’s body convulsed as Allura continued to treat her, their quintessence even merging together.

“Just a bit more. Hang on, Pidge.” Allura gasped out. She then felt a strange presence that was lurking inside her friend. When Pidge’s convulsions ceased, a dark form of energy phased through her. Seeing it, she, Keith, and Matt were all shocked and didn’t know what to make of it. It then disappeared.

“What was...” Keith was stunned.

“I don’t know.” Allura shook her head. She then looked down at Pidge. “Pidge? Pidge, do you hear me?” She saw the paladin open her eyes, her pupils back to normal. “Pidge...”

“I’m sorry...” Pidge whispered as she closed her eyes. “I didn’t want to hurt anyone...” Her breathing mellowed out as she lost consciousness.

“We have her...” Allura nearly cried. “We have her...”

“Kolivan, do you copy?” Matt asked into the comm. “Kolivan, we need an extraction. Some of the others are severely injured… we need to get out…

**“I hear you; just hang on if possible; we’ll get you out.”** Kolivan responded.

“I’ll see what I can do to help the others until he gets here; you guys stay with Pidge.” Allura said, getting up and running to check on the others, starting with Shiro who had the worst injury.

“It’s okay, Pidge… we have you.” Matt reached and ran his fingers through the white hair. “We have you now… you’re safe… you’re safe...”


	56. Pidge Funk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fighting was hard. Pidge caused considerable damage. Her damage, though, was physical; the others knew they could recover. The damage Haggar caused was worse, creating an emotional strain, especially in the green paladin.

The joy of the Altean healing pods was that many life threatening injuries could be treated, chances of survival being more likely. The pods weren’t exactly miracle workers, but they were efficient enough. As efficient as they were, though, there were problems.

A few days had passed since the group was forced to fight Pidge and they barely managed to save her. Everyone had been healed up for the most part, but some effects lingered. Shiro’s was the worst, his entire right arm missing. Ulaz said it could take time, but he felt he could design a prosthetic to help the former paladin. Then there was Lance, he was blinded in his left eye. The red paladin assured the others that he would be fine, that he often closed that eye anyway to focus more and aim better.

“Besides,” Lance hummed, “I look pretty badass like this, huh? And now Pidge and I are scar buddies.”

“Lance, I don’t think that’s the thing Pidge will want to hear.” Shiro sighed. “But… I’m glad you’re taking this well.”

“Someone has to.” Lance stated. “Pidge is hurting. And we need to help her. And I think keeping a positive mental attitude about this can help.” He then looked over to Haxus. “Speaking of… how is Pidge?”

“She isn’t letting anyone in her room save for the mice; though they can only get in through the vents.” Haxus looked downcast. Since returning, Pidge had refused any and all medical treatment and wouldn’t talk to anyone. She holed herself up in her room, not even responding to her best friends, her dads, her mom, or her brother. Haxus worried that she wasn’t eating, but thankfully the mice were taking packaged snacks to her and reporting that she was eating those. “This isn’t going well… I don’t know how to bring her back from this.”

“We can’t give up, though.” Shiro said. “She’s our friend. Our family.”

“I know...” Haxus nodded. He then looked over to Ulaz who was working with Hunk’s hand. While the wound had healed and he did have a scar at the top and palm of his hand, there was another issue. He had nerve damage. “How is he?”

“Well, it… it’s not the best.” Ulaz muttered. “He may get movement and feeling back but… that could take years with a lot of therapy.”

“Years?” Keith asked. He didn’t want to say it, but Pidge really did a number on them. It was frightening. But also impressive. She was small; statistically, one would think she would have been easy to beat in battle; she bested them as much as she could until the end when her mind was fighting back against Haggar. “Isn’t there some sort of medicine that can help?”

“Nerve damage is a tricky thing, Keith.” Ulaz sat back and rubbed his eyes. “But I’ll know more over time...”

“Well. Cooking may be tricky.” Hunk mumbled. “Maybe I can get Kullo to help. He likes doing that and is eager to learn more.” He looked around. “Speaking of… where are Kullo and Drek?” He looked worried. “Drek’s okay, right?”

“He’s got another scar, but physically Drek is fine.” Haxus stated. “He and Kullo have been camping outside of Pidge’s room, trying to prompt her to come out but… it’s not been working so far.” Everyone was sad at that. Even her best friends couldn’t pull her out. This was definitely worse than when Sendak tried to take over the castle.

The castle. Shiro thought back to that time. He had comforted Pidge before after she nearly got Lance killed and scarred Shiro’s face. This was worse than that, but they were similar on a basic level. “Okay then. I’ll go talk to her.”

“Um, no offense, Shiro, but if not even her family could get through to her, how do you plan on it?” Lance asked. “I may be down to one eye, but even I can see you might not be able to make progress.”

“Because I’m armed with my charm and ability to talk with kids.” Shiro stated.

Lance stared. His gaze narrowed a bit. “Did you just… make a pun?” he asked. “And you were the one making a comment of Pidge probably not wanting to hear certain things...”

“I had to get it out of my system.” Shiro waved it off as he walked out of the room. “Wish me luck!”

“I’ll go with you. Just in case she decides to leave her room.” Haxus offered, joining him.

Shiro went to the hall where the paladins’ rooms were. On the plus side, Pidge was in her room and not hiding in her lion, that made it easier for the mice to bring her food and make sure she ate. Outside Pidge’s room were Kullo, Drek, Colleen, and Sam. They were sitting on the floor and waiting, hoping Pidge would come out.

“Oh, Shiro.” Drek perked up, his ears twitching. “How are you feeling?”

“Pretty good now that Ulaz isn’t poking and prodding at me.” Shiro tried to joke a bit. “Still no Pidge showing herself?”

“She overrode the locking systems and we can’t even open the door.” Kullo sighed.

“Okay, then override her override.” Shiro suggested. “I know you can, Kullo.”

Kullo’s fur bristled. “I mean… yeah but… as much as I’d love to go in and see Pidge, she’s not doing well and not opening up and she already threw one of her toys at me. Thankfully it was soft and I dodged it anyway. But she’s really upset...”

“I think I can get through to her. I did once before.” Shiro felt confident in that.

“If she throws something harder at you, don’t dodge; I don’t want it hitting me instead.” Kullo mumbled. He then got up and went Pidge’s door, getting the control panel in the wall next to it to show up. He worked with it until there was a beep.

“Thanks.” Shiro nodded. He then got the door opened and slipped in. Haxus took to sitting out in the hall with the others, waiting. “Pidge?” He looked the paladin’s bed, seeing her blankets and stuffed toys heaped together there. Had it not been her foot sticking out from under the plush pile, he wouldn’t have realized she was there. “Hey.”

“Go away...”

“Not happening.” Shiro went over and sat on the edge of the bed. He leaned back against the pile and Pidge some. “You’ve not left your room for a while.”

“Everyone’s safer if I’m just stuck in here.”

“Is that why you locked the door?”

“Not that it helped. You still got in.”

“No keeping me out.”

“I should be detained. Locked up.”

“You should be hugged and given peanut butter and chocolate.”

“Dammit Shiro!” Pidge flung upwards, scattering her toys. “I nearly killed you and you’re talking to me like I’m some child! I nearly killed the team!”

“But you didn’t. And you are a child.” Shiro shifted to look at Pidge better. “You’re a child who was taken advantage of.” He sighed. “I said we would try to keep a next time from happening… and we couldn’t. You were taken and Haggar got the control she wanted.” He reached out and touched Pidge’s cheek, the girl flinching some as he did so. “I failed you, Pidge… I failed you.”

“But you didn’t fail.” Hearing that, Pidge looked confused. “You did so much to protect others. From a child being threatened to your father. Sacrificing yourself for them… it’s harsh, but you did what you thought was right. And Haggar may have tried to take you, but a part of you still fought her.” He offered a smile. “That’s why I only lost an arm-”

“Only lost an arm!?” Pidge was shocked. “That’s your freaking arm! Your dominant hand!”

“But it’s better to lose that than my head.” Pidge blinked. He was right. She did go for his arm instead. “You could have killed me then and there. Was was nothing but a hindrance to the empire and you could have killed me. All of us. But you didn’t. You held back because a part of you was still fighting to take back control.”

Shiro scooted in closer and hugged Pidge, pulling over with his remaining arm. “I can’t promise that Haggar won’t have control again. I can’t promise that this won’t happen again. I can promise, when the empire messes with you, they mess with us. And I’ll be damned if I don’t step up and try to help you to the best of my ability.”

Pidge sighed as she sunk into Shiro’s hug. “I don’t want to hurt anyone… and I don’t want to face them. The things I did...”

“And no one blames you.” Shiro said. “We recovered. Some of us have a lot to adapt to, but… we recovered.” He nuzzled his face into Pidge’s hair. “The only thing left is for you to step out of this room and give us all hugs and let us spoil you.”

“Are… are you sure no one is mad? Or scared?”

“The only fear we have is whether or not you’re actually eating, but the mice are assuring Allura that you have been.”

“What about mad?”

“We’re going mad just waiting for you.”

“So no anger?”

“Only at Haggar.”

“Not at me?”

“Definitely not at you.” Shiro smiled. “We’ll get through this, Pidge. And who knows, maybe I’ll have a new arm one day. Won’t lose to Adam when we do arm wrestling again after we eventually go home to Earth.”

“How are you taking this so well?” Pidge inquired.

“The world is harsh and cruel, especially with this war.” Shiro responded. “Sometimes to get through the bad, we have to come up with jokes or look on the bright side. And the bright side is that we all survived, the children on that last planet were safe, and you helped to make sure Sam survived and we got him rescued.” He scooted back some. “So. Can we leave this room? Let it air out? Get you to see and hug the others. Then thrown into decontamination because you stink? This is what happens when you hole yourself up in your room for days.”

Pidge scowled a bit. “I don’t smell that bad.” she grumbled. She then lifted her arm and sniffed. “Ugh! Never mind. I do. Drek may not hug me since that’s stronger than my Yupper doll….”

“Yeah, and that smells funky already.” Shiro smirked. Pidge pouted, though it looked more adorable than serious. She then grabbed up the toy and shoved it into his face. “I yield, I yield.” he laughed out. He then stood up. “Well?”

“Can I um… stand behind you? In case someone throws something at me or tries to attack? Then they’ll hit you first?”

Shiro stared. “Kullo literally made a similar comment. Best friends truly do think alike.” He smiled brightly. “I’m sure the only throwing there will be is others throwing themselves at you to give you as many hugs as possible.” He got Pidge to stand up from the bed and join him at the door. “It’ll be fine.”

“If you’re sure...” Pidge hid under his arm and looked to his right side. No arm. Gone because of her. She had seen mechanical limbs several times in other Galra. It wasn’t uncommon. She wondered if she could make a new one for him. It was the least she could do. “Okay… let’s open the door...”

Shiro nodded and got it opened. He stopped when he saw everyone else there, waiting for them. It wasn’t even just those originally there, but everyone from the castle. They were waiting and when they saw Pidge, they were happy.

“Pidge!” Kullo was the first to hug Pidge, even picking her up. Instinctively, she wrapped her limbs around him. “You’re finally out. You smell bad, but you finally left your room. We were so worried about you. It’s been quintants.” He started crying, happy to have Pidge back and within hugging range. “Drek couldn’t even find enjoyment in video games; they’re boring without you.”

Pidge burrowed her face into Kullo’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. For everything. For what I did. For worrying you.” she mumbled. “Thank you guys. Thank you all for being there for me.”

“We’re a family, Pidge.” Lance reminded. “There’s no getting rid of us.”

Pidge smiled. She then nudged Kullo. “Go ahead and let me down. I’ve got more people to hug.”

“Can we throw you in the showers or something first?” Drek asked. “You smell worse than that old Yupper of yours.” That got the others to laugh. Despite his comment, though, when Kullo put Pidge back down, Drek went and hugged his best friend. “I’m glad you’re okay.” he said. He then ran a hand through the white hair on the green paladin. “I know things were bad, but something good came out of it. The white hair really suits you.”

“Who’d have thought that stress looks so good on me.” Pidge commented. At first the others worried, wondering if that was a good comment to make, but her grin said she was teasing and having fun. When she chuckled, the others were relieved in smiling in response. “Now, who is brave enough for Pidge funk for the next hug?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm gonna say this here and now.  
> This all almost turned out differently. I had actually originally planned for Haggar to have Sam killed in front of Pidge and that would cause her to break and for Haggar to control her. But I'm glad I didn't. Now Pidge has two dads who care for her.  
> Also, the image doesn't fully align with the chapter, but it was drawn way back in March. But I felt it was good to still upload it with this chapter.  
> Anyway! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter.  
> Until next time!


	57. Wellness Check

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Blade of Marmora goes around the castle, checking with the others to see how they were coping after the fight with Pidge.

“Hey! You need to be careful.” Kullo came in quick and helped take the tray out of the oven, protective mitts already on. He put the tray up on the counter. “I know you want to get full movement in your hand back, but you could hurt yourself if you rush too much.”

Hunk chuckled a bit. “Sorry, I guess I thought cooking was simple enough.” he admitted. “Putting it in one handed is one thing but pulling the tray back out… I mean, I managed the rest well, even with my hand limited right now.” He smiled. “Thanks for helping, Kullo.”

“Always glad to do so.” Kullo nodded. He heard the doors slide open and looked to see Ulaz step in. “Oh! Hi, Ulaz! Did you need anything?”

“In a sense.” Ulaz stated. He looked to Hunk. “I was hoping to talk with you.”

“Oh.” Hunk gulped. “Um, can it wait? Or be talked about while I try to do some baking?” He went to put some balls of peanut butter cookie dough on another tray; they were Pidge’s favourite and though doing better, she had appeared to isolate herself from the others once again. He hoped the treats would draw her out.

“We’re doing wellness checks.”

“Wellness checks?” Kullo asked, looking confused.

“The others went through a traumatizing experience. While doing better physically now, though changes and recovery still need to occur, mental health is important.” Ulaz informed.

“I think I’m doing fine mentally.” Hunk assured. “Kullo? Can you put this tray in?”

“Sure thing!”

“It does not work that way, Hunk.” Ulaz stated. “Kolivan gave his orders. We are to talk and evaluate your mental standing so recovery can progress better.”

Hunk sighed. “So what am I supposed to do? Spill my heart? Talk about how pissed I am that Haggar keeps finding a way to hurt Pidge?” he muttered. He looked to his hand, the glove removed and allowing him to see the scar there. “But… there’s nothing I can do alone about that. Dealing with that witch is a team thing.” He then smiled, tracing his finger over the palm of his hand. “Yeah, this is gonna take some getting used to, but… I’m happy. I’m happy that despite everything, Pidge had some deal of control.”

“Though you were hurt?” Ulaz inquired. He went over and leaned against the island cabinet. He eyed a cookie on the tray that was pulled out and decided to pick it up, biting into it despite still being hot; he had to cup a hand under it since it fell apart with ease.

“Sure. I mean, I was hurt and I’ll recover. It could’ve been worse, I could have been killed instead. We all could have.” Hunk smiled. “But deep inside, Pidge was still fighting Haggar. She may not have had full control, but she still made an effort to not go for the fatal hits.” He looked to Ulaz, the biggest grin on his face. “And that makes me feel better. Yeah, I’m pissed at that witch… and I’m sad that Pidge had to endure it, but I’m happy because we all made it out of there and got to come home to the castle. And maybe one day we can all go home to Earth. We get to see our planet again, Pidge can see it for the first time. Even Drek and Kullo. We’ll go home together one day.”

Ulaz smiled fondly. It was sweet that Hunk could manage to stay so positive even with all that happened. “You truly do hold up to being the yellow paladin and a leg of Voltron, supporting the others.” he praised.

-+-+-+-

Kolivan watched as Lance was on the training deck, working on shooting down practice drones and blocking with the personal particle barrier-shield or dodging their shots. He was trying to work with the situation since he had a permanent blindside. Sure, Kolivan did acknowledge that Lance often closed an eye to focus better, but this time it was not a choice.

The intensity of the attack increased and Lance appeared to struggle. Before Kolivan could call off the training session, Lance’s bayard changed from its sniper-rifle-like form to a sort of broadsword. He slashed at the drones as he spun around, taking them all out in one hit. Kolivan’s eyes widened in shock when he saw that, but he soon relaxed, proud to see that it all played out well.

“End training sequence.” the Marmora agent stated.

“Huh?” Lance looked over. “Oh, hey, Kolivan.” He looked to the bayard’s new form. “I guess Pidge isn’t the only one who can turn her bayard into different forms, huh? Good thing you guys trained us on different weapons.” He deactivated his weapon. “I guess I gotta get used to full combat with this eye, huh?”

“How does that make you feel?” Kolivan inquired.

“How… oh no… we’re doing wellness checks, aren’t we?” Lance groaned. “Do we have to do this?” He looked to see Kolivan’s expression not changing. “Okay, fine!” He removed his helmet and went to the side, deciding to sit down during their talk. Thinking of it, he figured he could use a rest from training anyway. “I don’t know what to really tell you, though. I’m physically adapting. I don’t exactly mind being down to one eye.”

“And about Pidge?” Kolivan inquired. He himself had no negativity towards Pidge, but he worried about how the rest of the team felt. They were the ones who had to fight their friend; they were the ones who had suffered the most, physically and emotionally.

Lance was silent. How did he feel about Pidge? He definitely wasn’t angry, that was for sure. He was scared. But not of her. “I’m scared that we won’t be able to do anything if this happens again.” he admitted. “Allura barely made it through to Pidge, barely was able to bring her back… what if this happens again?” He was deeply concerned for his friend and fellow paladin. “And what if she’s broken to the point where she can’t come back? I don’t want that to happen. I’m afraid of that being part of our reality, though...”

Kolivan sat down next to Lance, his ears drooping some as he listened to the red paladin. It was definitely understandable.

“Somehow she made it, though. And even when she fought us… I wonder if she was trapped in her own mind and screaming to break free.” Lance sighed. “She probably was. That’s why we got away with what injuries we did.” He covered his eye. “I’m worried that Pidge may not fully heal from this, though. I mean, she seemed fine in the end the other day but… she’s been hiding out elsewhere and avoiding us. The guilt must be eating her.”

Kolivan gently put a hand on Lance’s head, ruffling his hair a bit. “We’re supposed to be talking about you.”

“And I’m worried and scared for my friend.” Lance shifted and leaned against the older male. “But that’s why I want to train more. I want to better myself. I want to be able to stand at Pidge’s side and make sure nothing happens to her again.”

Kolivan’s smile was soft and sincere. “You always did have a way of caring for others more than yourself.” he mused.

“Kolivan? This won’t happen again, right? We’ll be able to protect Pidge?”

Kolivan was silent at first. He knew he couldn’t give false hope and lie to the paladins, but he couldn’t just flat out tell them that it may not be possible. Though he didn’t lie to them growing up, he often kept their hopes up a bit, letting them know it could be possible to one day find and meet their missing paladin. Looking down at Lance leaning in against him, he was taken back to those days, looking after them when they were much younger children. “Training and teamwork has always made you guys strong and will continue to do so.” he reminded. “I can’t promise much, but I can promise that if this does happen again, you would know what to do and fight your best.”

-+-+-+-

When Ulaz was done talking with Hunk and even Kullo, despite the latter not being in the fight, he still was part of the team, he went to check on Shiro. He found Shiro in his room, the former paladin giving him permission to enter. There, he saw him on the floor, managing to do push-ups with one arm.

“You should not be straining yourself.” Ulaz reminded, stepping over and sitting on the edge of Shiro’s bed. “I know you feel fine, but you need to take it easy and gradually build up the strength.”

“My left arm’s plenty strong and I need to keep it in top shape.” Shiro commented. He struggled to push himself up one last time before giving in and laying on the floor. “But… maybe I should take a break, huh?” He rolled over and sat up. “Let me guess, Kolivan wants us to do wellness checks?” Ulaz nodded. “Okay… so where do I start?”

“Wherever you feel like starting.”

“I feel like a failure.” Shiro admitted. “After we nearly lost the castle, I told Pidge that we would work together to keep a _next time_ from happening. Next time did happen. And it didn’t go well.” He let out a sigh. “But… it didn’t go the worst it could have.”

“What do you feel about Pidge?”

“Sad… that she has to put up with all this. She’s been treated like the empire’s plaything even when she’s been able to pull away from them. But also proud.” Shiro’s smile seemed a little bitter with his sad eyes. “I mean… I’m upset that she was pushed into such a corner that she couldn’t get out of, but the choices she made… we were able to find her father. We could find Sam. Now the Holt family is together. If she hadn’t given in that day, he would have probably died. But… everything hurts.” He put his hand to his chest to show he meant in his heart. “But in a way… it’s going to be better. I’m sure of it.”

“And now?”

“I’m still worried. I got Pidge out of her room finally. But now she’s… avoiding us. She’s probably hurting, too… and we can’t find her right off. But according to Allura, the mice once again have been keeping tabs.” Shiro responded. “We need to be patient with her. But if this continues, I’m checking for her biorhythm, dragging her out of what vent she’s hiding in, and hugging her until she relents and stops running off.” He paused for a second. “And starts feeling better. I will hug her into better emotions.”

“Quite the threat.”

“It’s more of a promise.”

-+-+-+-

“Keith?” Krolia checked in on her son. She knew Kolivan was having wellness checks done and normally he wouldn’t permit her to check in with her son for this, especially since she had been in the fight, too, but trying to stop a Galran mother was ill-advised.

“I’m not a very good leader...”

Krolia went into her son’s room and sat down on the bed next to him. Keith was looking at a photo she had brought to him when she, Antok, and Kolivan finally got out to the group back on Arus. It was of him and the others when they were much younger; Keith’s father had been the one to take the picture. They were all so very young. Keith, Lance, and Hunk hadn’t yet learned or come to terms to Pidge being missing, but Matt and Shiro certainly did since they were older.

“If I had been a better leader, I’d have been able to keep Pidge from even being captured when they empire attacked Tuzeon.” Keith stated. “I’d have been able to protect her. And my team.”

“Things do not always go according to plan.” Krolia stated. “Long ago, the Gaia Space Station had excellent leadership, superb teamwork, and what we thought were perfect defenses. But the empire still took the base down and destroyed many lives.” She put an arm around Keith’s shoulders, pulling him in to a hug. “We cannot always sit and sulk about what happened. We have to able to look ahead and plan so we can protect others.”

Keith nodded. “What if we are too late next time? Or what if the stress is too much on Pidge if this happens again?” he asked. “Haggar won’t stop until she has Pidge… she wants the paladin. She wants the lions. Zarkon… wants them...”

“Then we need to keep working to make sure Pidge is safe and with us. We can’t let them have her back.” Krolia smiled. “Besides, Pidge isn’t going to go back so willingly.”

“But...”

“You called that willing?” Krolia interrupted her son. “She was pushed to doing what she did. And she protected lives that way.”

Keith nodded, this time with more determination. “Now it’s our turn to protect her life.”

“That’s my boy.” Krolia kissed Keith’s cheek, opposite of the wound that had scarred over. The pod may have healed it, but it still left a bad scar. “How do you feel?”

Keith gently touched the scar. It wasn’t too bad. No pain. It didn’t fill him with negative emotions. He didn’t have to adapt and change his lifestyle. “If I had another on the other cheek, I’d look like you.” Keith commented. “I wonder if I can get a tattoo.”

Krolia snorted a bit. She then patted Keith’s back. “Let’s hold off on that.” she said. “Anyway, how about some training to take your mind off of things?” Keith nodded in agreement as he got up.

“Yeah.” he confirmed. “I need to get stronger if I’m gonna be better at supporting and protecting my team.”

-+-+-+-

Kolivan stepped into the common room and stood next to Matt. The elder Holt child was leaning against a wall, watching Drek talk with Sam and Colleen, learning about Ryl from them. He looked so happy as he asked questions. The Holt couple were pleased to tell him more about his bibi.

Of all the members of the team Kolivan worried about, Matt and Pidge were highest on his list. They were siblings. Pidge dealt with enough trauma and Matt was always worried about losing his sister again. He worried that the older Holt child would be broken up about this.

“How do you feel?” Kolivan asked.

“I don’t get it.” Matt sighed. “I was hardly hurt at all, Pidge didn’t attack me except for one quick strike… and yet I’m the one struggling to smile and talk with the others. Drek has a scar on his side, could have died back there by his best friend’s hand… and yet he’s fine, smiling, happy to talk, and quick to snuggle up to Pidge when she finally comes back from wherever to go to bed.”

“Drek has learned to cope with things differently than you.” Kolivan stated.

“I think most of all… I’m worried about losing Pidge.” Matt sighed. “We keep coming so close to losing her and we barely scrape by it seems.”

“You’re all worried about the same thing it seems.” Kolivan stated.

“I think the worst part of things is that I froze up.” Matt looked hurt. “I could have done something more… and I froze up. I couldn’t call out to her, I couldn’t try to stop her… it took until she nearly took down the team for me to finally get my nerve back. I should have been there for her… I’m her big brother...”

“But you’re also a living being with emotions.” Kolivan rationalized. “And in the end, she was brought back.”

Matt wanted to ask _for how long_ , but he held his tongue on that. Kolivan was right. Pidge was brought back. And it wasn’t that she made the choices she made on her own. Throk pushed her to surrender and Haggar threatened Sam’s life to get Pidge to give in. “Pidge is pretty damn tough.” Matt mused. “I need to be strong, too. I’m her big brother. I’m supposed to protect her.” He smiled. “Thanks Kolivan.”

“Hmm?” Kolivan blinked in confusion.

“I think this made me feel better.” he assured. “And even more determined to protect Pidge.” He looked to Drek. He was so happy. Even though Kullo wasn’t in the room, he knew the other was happy, too. The castle was their home. The team was their family. “Protect all my siblings.”

Kolivan smiled. Though the team was hurting, they were all doing better than they could have. They were so young, so fragile, but their love for each other, their bonds with one another, it truly made them unbreakable and the perfect team.

“So… has everyone had a wellness check yet?” Matt inquired.

“Drek hasn’t but…” Kolivan watched the blue coloured Galran. He ended up snuggling into Colleen’s side, the rebel smiling and hugging him. He really did find himself a place in the Holt family. “I don’t know. I think he’s doing rather well. But I’ll keep an eye on him and check in later.”

“And Pidge?”

“I’ll see if Coran can scan for her location within the castle. Then we need someone,” Matt opened his mouth to speak up, “not you,” Kolivan was quick to shoot that down, “to go and talk with her. I’m thinking either Thace or Ulaz would be best. They’ve been spies in the empire… they would know more in how to talk with Pidge.”

“I sure hope she’s okay.” Matt mumbled. Though she finally left her room, she had gone off elsewhere. He hoped she was recovering well, especially on an emotional level. So much had happened to her, he didn’t want her hiding away and getting worse.


	58. Getting Pidge Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team is worried that Pidge is struggling to mentally come back from what she endured. They knew it wouldn't have been easy, but they continue to worry. Pidge, though, is coping in her own quirky way. Hopefully it helps her out. And some the others.

“According to Coran’s scan of the castle and the schematics, there should be a room around here that Pidge is hiding in...” Thace checked the data on the small orange pad, making sure he didn’t get lost. He knew the castle was large, but trying to find a certain room and the smallest member of the team (not counting the mice), he wondered if he would get lost instead. He then found his way, stopping at a door in one of the lower areas of the castle. “This should be it.”

Thace activated the door, getting it to open up. The room was a sort of work room, bits of tech and old books lying around or on shelves. He was told that it was Coran’s grandfather’s old study and work room, personally added in when he was building the castle. Looking in, Thace realized he didn’t have to search long to find Pidge. She was hunched over at a table, tinkering with something.

Thace watched silently, observing what Pidge was doing. She was so enthralled in her work, she didn’t even notice him stepping closer. Or perhaps it was the blue pair of headphones she was wearing, music going through them from a small datapad of sorts on the table? He figured it was a mix of both. Nearing the table, Thace took notice of what Pidge was working on. A mechanical arm. Looking at it, he knew it was too big for her, not that she even needed it. And the proportions weren’t accurate for a Galran. But it was the right size for a certain someone who was missing their arm.

“This is what you’ve been holing yourself up for?” he mused, though mainly to himself.

“Huh? What? Whoa!” Pidge got startled and tried to back away, not expecting Thace to _suddenly_ be there. She fell off her chair, crashing into some boxes nearby of varying parts and junk; in reaction, Thace winced.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.” Thace apologized. He reached out and offered a hand to Pidge, helping her back up.

“I guess I was a bit focused.” Pidge smiled sheepishly. “And I guess I was found. Just so you know, I’m not sulking. I’m working.” She climbed back up into the chair, balancing on the balls of her feet rather than sitting in it normally. She didn’t start working yet, though. “Um… can you keep this a secret? I want it to be a surprise...” She sighed. “I’m almost done… but… I want to surprise Shiro. And Hunk.”

Hunk? Thace looked to see another object, this one almost glove-like. He gently picked it up and looked it over. “Tell me what this is about,” he meant the glove-like object, “and I’ll do just that.”

Pidge grinned. “It’s to stimulate the nerves in Hunk’s hand!” She was proud to announce that. “I caused a lot of damage, but with this, it should help so he can utilize it again. I mean, if he wants full use without it, he’d still need to recover and train, but this can help in the long wrong. That way he can do all the fun stuff he likes to do.”

“And you designed this?” Thace looked amazed.

“Not alone.” Pidge shifted in her chair, sitting mostly normally; her legs were crossed in and interlaced, but at least she was sitting. “I learned a lot from my time in the empire, you know. Plus, I found old works and writings of Wimbleton Smythe. According to his writings, he’s actually Coran’s grandfather which is super awesome! Did you know he was the one who built the castle? I mean, he had help, but he was the main architect and designer! The man was an absolute genius! I’d have loved to meet him. I can only imagine all the things he could have personally taught me. But at least I found his writings. It was thanks to those and what I already knew that I was able to work on these.”

“Take a breath.” Thace’s eyes were wide in shock, wondering just how Pidge could stay so much and as quickly as she did in one breath. “And probably a break.”

“I can’t stop now!” Pidge nearly whined. “I’m almost complete! I just need to tweak with a few extra things, then Shiro’s new arm should be done and ready. I mean, I’ll probably be tweaking with them for the next movement to ensure that they’re ideal for Shiro and Hunk, but the general basis will be complete. And Ulaz will have to help attach the arm and do checks to make sure his body can handle it. And if Shiro even wants it. Oh my stars! What if they don’t like the items? What if they don’t want them? I never even thought about that! But I didn’t want to ask the because I didn’t want to ruin any surprises. I should have thought about that first, though. Maybe I should have hinted it? Or talked to others? Oh no!”

“Okay, Pidge, breathe. Take in a deep breath.” Thace was worried when Pidge went right into panicking. “Okay, now I’m sure they’ll be appreciative of your work and love them. Already Ulaz was looking into setting up a new arm for Shiro, but it looks like you beat him to it. And your glove for Hunk will really be helpful.” He moved to sit on the edge of the worktable. He offered the frantic girl a gentle smile. “It’ll be fine, Pidge.”

Thace looked back to the arm. It was sleek and mostly white. There looked like there would be blue lights on parts of it, much like on the paladin armor. The fingers, minus the thumb, and the elbow and inner part of the elbow looked to be a softer yet durable material, probably meant for ideal flexibility. “You’ve really done a lot of work.” he admitted. “And it looks like it’ll match his left arm in size. How’d you manage this?”

“Lance called it fanservice one day. I called it an opportune time to study.”

“You were oggling.”

“Oggling is what Janka does whenever Trugg or Gnov are around.”

Thace couldn’t keep a straight face. He ended up snorting in response to that. Taking a peek, he saw that Pidge was smirking. “Okay, I’ll give you that.” He watched as Pidge resumed her work, finishing some final tweak’s on the new prosthesis’ hand, especially the fingers to ensure it would be mobile and wouldn’t lock up. “Well, if you’re not going to take a break, we can do the wellness check while you work.”

“Wellness check?” Pidge stopped long enough to look up at the Blade. She then resumed her work.

“It’s where we talk about what happened. How you feel.”

Pidge sighed. “I hate the empire more and more. Or at least what it stands for. And Haggar.” she admitted. “But… while I regret not being strong enough to fight back more in the end and it got my friends and family hurt, I don’t regret my decisions I made. I was able to help protect the children on Tuzeon. And I have Dad.” She smiled softly, thinking of how the family was back together. “We’re all back together.”

“And they’ve taken a shine to Kullo and Drek.” Thace mused. “But what else do you feel?” Pidge was silent as she continued working. “You know, I’ve been a spy a long time. And because of my work, I had to turn my back on others. I’ve even had to hurt them...” Pidge looked up. “I’ve even had to harm other Blades who were caught.”

“How did… you cope?” Pidge asked.

“I remembered my mission. I had to keep my position so I could feed information back to the Blades. But it left a guilt in my heart.” Thace responded. He knew that this was about Pidge, but he felt that if he spoke a bit about himself, she would open up more. “I still feel that sadness, it will always linger, but I stand strong because I know one day we will win. It’s a bit more optimistic than most tend to show, but it’s how I feel.”

Pidge sighed. “I do feel guilty. I feel bad for what I did, it doesn’t matter that I didn’t have full control.” she admitted. “But that’s why I’m working on these. I know it won’t change what happened, nothing will, but… it can help steer us in the right direction. Right?”

“That’s right.” Thace nodded. He watched Pidge work. She was just a child and dealing with so much, but she used her skills to help her cope. And to help the team. He was certain her guilt would linger, but that just showed how much she cared for her team and didn’t want to hurt them, especially against her will.

Pidge continued to work for a few more vargas before she finished. She was pleased with her work, even running a few minor tests. Once done, she got Thace to help keep the items hidden as they went up to the common room, Pidge asking to meet with the others, namely Shiro and Hunk, there. When she saw them all, she was at first nervous, but she did her best to push that aside.

“I… I wanted to apologize. For what I did back at the empire’s main ship… and for hiding away.” she quickly said. “Though this latest time of hiding was for another re-whoa!” She didn’t get to finish before Hunk was quick to pick her up in a bear hug; he didn’t need his fingers and dexterity for that.

“We were getting worried with you hiding away!” he practically sobbed. “Are you okay? What were you up to? We thought you were still struggling to recover...”

“If you put me down, I can show you.” Pidge gasped out. “And. Breathe.”

“Oops!” Hunk nearly dropped Pidge, but otherwise let go and had her set down. “Sorry.”

“Phew. The stress of the empire may not have killed me, but I think your hug might. Wow.” Pidge shook her head to regain her senses. “Anyway!” She looked to Thace who showed the items he had behind his back. Seeing them, the others were stunned. “I may need to do some fine tuning, but...” She took the glove first and brought it to Hunk. Helping him put it on, she got it activated.

“It’s kinda… tingly. But that’s wearing… off...” Hunk moved his fingers. They were a bit stiff, but Pidge figured she could work that out. Otherwise, it was as if he wasn’t injured at all. “My hand is… actually working.”

“You’ll still need to recover and work on your hand over time to use it without the glove, but this should help until then. And possibly even help with your hand since we can alter it to different tensions so you can have more strain to work against over time.” Pidge explained. She then looked alarmed, tears visibly falling down Hunk’s face. “Hunk?”

Hunk smiled and hugged Pidge again, though not as tightly for the sake of her smaller body and ability to breath. “Thank you, Pidge. You didn’t need to do this but… thank you so much.” he said softly.

Pidge smiled softly as she snuggled in against her larger friend. “I’m glad.” Her voice was muffled since she buried her face against Hunk. She stayed there for a moment longer before finally pulling away.

“Don’t think I forgot about you, Shiro.” Pidge motioned to the arm. “We’ll need Ulaz’s help in getting it in place and properly set up so it can function as you would control your other arm, but...”

Shiro went over and gently touched the cool, white metal. Everything about it looked to be perfect, even mirroring the size and length of his other arm. He was mentally prepared for a prosthesis to aid him, but finding out that Pidge made one already? He couldn’t help but tear up a bit. “Thank you, Pidge.” He went over, hugging her with his remaining arm. “How did you even figure out the right size? I don’t recall any measurements being made.”

“She oggled you.”

“I was studying him!” Pidge hissed at Thace. Her team started laughing, finding that to be amusing; hearing them, she smiled. She then looked over to Lance. “I’m sorry I haven’t figured anything out yet for your eye. Limbs are one thing I know. Eyes? Um...”

“Don’t worry about it, Pidge.” Lance assured. “Besides, I think I’m getting the hang of this.” He went over, taking his turn to hug Pidge. “But thanks for thinking of me.”

“You’ve done amazing work.” Allura praised, checking out Shiro’s new arm. “Ulaz, you’ll be able to apply this to Shiro?”

“It shouldn’t be too hard.” Ulaz confirmed as he nodded.

Allura smiled. “And Pidge, I do hope this means you’ll be hiding less.”

“Only in the gaming room and kicking Drek’s butt at games.”

“Oh you’re on!”

Pidge grinned before running off, Drek chasing after her. At least she would be easy to find.

“I’ll be there in a few doboshes with snacks!” Kullo called after them as he ran out.

Allura let out a sigh of relief. “I’m glad. I think we truly have her back.” she said softly, pleased that despite all the stress and trouble, Pidge was back to being energetic and eager to be with others.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In canon, we saw Lance with green headphones, suggesting he borrowed them from Pidge. Here, we see Pidge with blue ones, suggesting they were borrowed from Lance. I love making little references.  
> Anyway! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Until next time!


	59. Rain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lotor returns to Voltron, feeling it is time for the team to meet the other Alteans and for the Alteans to finally meet their princess. In going, Pidge, Drek, and Kullo get to experience something new and strange.

“Well, Shiro?” Sam inquired, looking to the former paladin as he flexed his arm. He assisted Ulaz in getting the new arm set up for Shiro to use.

“Wow.” Shiro struggled to find the words. “It’s… I know it’s not but… it feels like the real deal.”

“That’s a good thing, right?” Sam questioned.

“Very good.” Shiro nodded.

“You’ll still need to train with it to make sure you understand how it feels to you and so you know you have control, but it seems like you’ll be fine.” Ulaz informed. “We’ll keep an eye on things to make sure the movement is as fluid as your other arm.” He smiled. “Pidge did a remarkable job making this.”

“I’m so proud of her.” Sam gushed.

“You should be.” Shiro confirmed. “Though things haven’t been easy for her, she’s done her best. She’s learned so much, trained hard… there’s so much to be proud about with Pidge.” He then looked around. “Where is she anyway? I’d expect her to be around to see how the arm is coming along.”

“She and the boys are out and relaxing since we’re on Olkarion.” Sam reported. “I think they like this planet.”

-+-+-+-

Indeed, Pidge, Drek, and Kullo did enjoy being on Olkarion. While the Olkari had started using their city again, many still continued to live in the forest and work there. The trio was relaxing there, finding a sunny spot to lay down in. They had been helping earlier, getting a new weapon system set up so the Olkari could defend their planet from future attacks. After work, it was time to rest.

The others felt that after all they had to deal with, it was a good idea to rest a bit, especially for Pidge. Her team insisted that she get some rest while on Olkarion; during that time, planets they could hit, the other paladins were working off and on, getting their jobs completed and helping to liberate more planets. Pidge complained at first, but when Ryner pointed out that she could help out on Olkarion and take breaks in between tasks, she decided it was a good idea.

“You sure you’re okay, Pidge?” Kullo asked. He looked to the mice that were messing with Pidge’s hair, getting tangles out and even putting sections into tiny braids. “I know you keep saying you are but...”

“Don’t worry so much, Ku.” Pidge smiled brightly. “I’m doing fine. I mean… I’m still upset at what all happened, but… I’m glad that it wasn’t the worst that it could’ve been. Plus! Dad’s okay now!” She looked pleased. “The family’s together now. Mom, Dad… Matt. And the three of us.”

“A family.” Drek smiled. “It sounds nice. And they like us a lot, too. Mom and Dad...” His ears twitched. Parents. It had been so long and all he really knew was what others could tell him of his own. But Sam and Colleen were like parents to him and Kullo very quickly. “You think they’d mind?”

“I think they’d be happy with whatever you’re comfortable calling them.” Pidge assured.

“Even… even Mom said we’re her children.” Kullo smiled. “It does feel nice calling her that. Having a mom that doesn’t judge me for my choices and life.” He then perked up when he heard movement coming toward them; Colleen approached them.

“Already calling me _mom_? I highly approve.” the rebel told the boys.

“Hey Mom. How are things going?” Pidge asked.

“Shiro’s arm is in place and working rather well.” Colleen informed. “Of course it’ll need monitoring so we know he’s adapting well. But you truly did wonders in making it.”

“Success!” Pidge cheered. “And what about Hunk? He’s doing okay with the device for his hand?”

“You’ll find out whenever you kids visit him in the kitchen. He’s been baking cookies.” Colleen smirked at that. “Anyway, that’s not why I’m here.”

“Judging by your demeanor and lack of urgency, we’re not under attack or being called to battle.” Kullo pointed out.

“But if it’s not about Shiro’s arm… and it’s not about any new tech from the Olkari, Ryner would’ve contacted us.” Pidge mused.

“We have company. Lotor decided to pay us a visit.” Colleen stated. “Though Allura’s still cautious, she’s considering a visit to Pollux.”

“Pollux?” Drek thought it over. “Okay. I don’t recall that planet name… is it one we should know?”

“I don’t remember it from studies.” Pidge admitted.

“It’s what Lotor calls the planet that the other Alteans are living on.” Colleen stated. She helped the others up from the ground.

“Ooh. That makes sense now.” Pidge nodded. “So we’re taking a trip?”

“Sounds like.” Colleen confirmed. “C’mon.”

The others returned to the castle to see that Lotor was indeed there with two of his allies, Acxa and Narti; Zethrid and Ezor were back on Pollux. When Lotor saw Pidge, his eyes widened.

“Goodness, what happened?” he asked. “Last I saw you, you had less white hair.” Lotor looked worried as he went over to Pidge and checked her. “Though the braids are a good look but the white hair...”

“Stress. Looks good on me.” Pidge commented with a smirk.

Lotor was stunned. He looked to the others for any sort of response or explanation.

“A lot has happened.” Allura informed.

“I could tell.” Lotor had noticed the facial scarring Lance, Keith, and Matt endured. He didn’t recall those from last time. He could only imagine how bad things were with the war.

“So what’s this about visiting Pollux?” Keith inquired. “Wasn’t it risky?”

“It was. And there is still some risk. But the new ships are made using the comet you helped us obtain.” Lotor stated. “And defenses have been improved. And the Alteans… they are excited to meet their princess.” He smiled at Allura. “And many are even wanting to help.”

“Help? As in fight in this war?” Allura asked. She didn’t want to involve them, but she knew they needed help. Every quintant, there were battles. And many battles had casualties. She didn’t want to risk their lives, but those who could help were often needed.

“Hearing about you and your efforts with Voltron, many were inspired. They already help to make sure their planet… their home is safe, but now several want to do more.” Lotor stated.

“Well, we are finished with this planet and we’ve gotten more liberated.” Allura commented. She looked to her team.

“You’ve been wanting to see the Alteans. Your people.” Keith reminded the princess.

“I think it’d be good to visit.” Lance pointed out.

“And maybe even learn about what recipes they have.” Hunk chimed in. It was part in joking, but he was also serious; he loved other cultures and new people, ready to learn about their recipes.

The others were in agreement. It seemed like a good idea to visit the Alteans. Yes, deep inside everyone was worried about danger following them to Pollux, danger and trouble seemed to follow the team everywhere, but they knew they would fight to protect those in need.

The team did a final check with Olkarion, making sure things were in order and that the Olkari would be fine. With their new defenses up, they were fine and able to defend themselves, especially now since more and more rebels were in and out of the city, helping out and working with supplies to bring in and transport to locations in need. The planet was a target, but they were able to stand strong.

With the use of a wormhole, they were able to get to Pollux with ease, Lotor giving the princess the coordinates for them to go to. Seeing the planet, the Earthlings, sans Pidge, were in awe, smiling when they saw it. Greens and blues caressed the planet’s surface. Sure, they had seen many others, but this planet felt like home to them. It felt like Earth.

“Oh, it appears that some weather patterns have set in our area of landing.” Lotor mused. “I hope you all don’t mind rain.”

“Rain? Like, legit rain?” Lance asked. “Refreshing water falling? Puddles to splash in? That rain?”

“Quite so.” Lotor nodded in confirmation. “Ah, you know of it?”

“It’s what I miss most about Earth.” Lance sighed, softness in his eyes.

“Rain. There were days I feared I would never feel the rain fall upon me again.” Colleen looked to the planet longingly. “It’s not Earth, but I’ll see it as a preview to home.”

“Um...” Pidge made herself known. “What’s rain?” Pidge spent much of her time on bases and ships. She knew of certain weather patterns due to studies, but she wasn’t accustomed to experiencing them. Everything was monitored during most of what she grew up with. The same applied for Drek and Kullo.

“Only the greatest thing ever.” Lance assured. “You’ll see soon.”

“You can bring the castle down outside the town. It’s clear and the ground is flat.” Lotor informed Allura.

“Right.” Allura brought the castle and landed it. “So… this rain… it really is that great? It doesn’t sound like we had it on Altea.”

“Well, we did have boiling rocks that fell from the sky.” Coran added.

“Yeah… this isn’t that.” Lance reminded. He then took off for the main entrance of the castle. When the door opened, his smile grew. Rain. True train falling from the sky. He stepped out and held out his arms, feeling it pelt against his body. A little cool in temperature, but the warm air around him made it better. He opened his mouth, letting raindrops fall in. “Just like being on Earth.”

“Man, this is awesome.” Hunk cheered, jumping around. “I mean, I know it hasn’t been too long but… it also feels like it’s been forever since we’ve been on Earth and had rain. Average rainfall out in where we lived wasn’t like other states, so we didn’t get it as often.”

“Yeah, you got a point there.” Lance nodded. He looked back to see Pidge, Drek, and Kullo peaking out curiously and cautiously. It was like when they were curious about Kaltenecker; it was really cute when he thought about it. They were definitely still children. “Hey, c’mon you three, come out here.” He held his arms out and spun. “It’s not scary.”

Matt came up behind the trio. He was amused. They didn’t know how to handle experiencing rain for the first time in their lives. “Go on. It won’t hurt you.”

Pidge nodded. She then stepped out. She squeaked when she found she was soaked very quickly and her hair lost its floof, laying flat against her. She then looked up. Soft. Gentle. Like a shower. But it was somehow better. It didn’t take long for Drek and Kullo to join her, Drek doing the best since his skin was all smooth, not appearing to have any sort of hair on him.

“This is… rain?” Drek asked. “It’s… kinda nice.”

“My fur’s all soggy.” Kullo didn’t sound upset about that; his chuckling showed he was amused. “This is… what you have on Earth?”

“In some areas more than others.” Lance confirmed. “And one day, we’ll all go home. You three included. We’ll be back on Earth one day and you can experience some good old fashioned Earth rain.”

Pidge smiled. Home. Earth. And it would even be home to Drek and Kullo. That felt nice to hear. If she couldn’t be with those she cared for, then it wasn’t home.

Pidge was lost in thought for a moment and Lance took advantage of it. He ran over and jumped into a forming puddle near the youngest of the group, splashing them. The trio yelped in surprise.

“The next best part about rain? The puddles.” Lance stated. “C’mon! Let’s have some fun for a bit! This is way better than just being cooped up to play video games.” He smiled. He got the others so play and have fun while it was raining, even getting the mud kicked up.

“You know, honey,” Sam said as he watched the others play, “though the circumstances differ, I had always dreamed about seeing our kids having fun. Even making a mess.”

“It’s a nice thing to dream about. And it’s now a reality. A good one where we have more kids than expected.” Colleen stated. She then watched Pidge playfully tackle Drek into the mud, the two laughing in excitement. “Ah, kids will be kids.”

-+-+-+-

“Commander Sendak,” Dazer approached the fluffier Galran, “we’ve tracked their location to this unknown planet.” He looked perplexed. “It’s not one listed in the database anywhere.”

“Scan for biorhythms.” Sendak ordered.

“I had already gone about it.” Dazer informed. “But… it doesn’t make sense.”

“What?”

“There are several Altean biorhythms. Alteans are on the planet… and not just the two part of the Voltron group.”

Sendak’s ear twitched. Alteans? They had been believed to have been wiped out ten thousand years ago. Yet there were readings? “Patch me in to Central Command.”

“Right away, sir.” Dazer nodded and got things set up. It didn’t take long for them to get in touch, Haggar showing up on screen. “High Priestess. Commander Sendak wishes to speak with you.”

**“Hopefully good news.”** Haggar responded.

“Perhaps.” Sendak stated. “There is reason to believe that those of Voltron have found more Alteans.”

Haggar was silent. She then nodded. **“That is… intriguing news. Standby for reinforcements. I think the emperor may be well enough to assist in this next task.”**

“Emperor Zarkon has recovered? That is good to hear.” Sendak nodded. “We’ll send you our coordinates. And of the green paladin?”

**“Capture her if possible. I have not given up on her usefulness to the empire.”** Haggar informed.

“Of course. Vrepit Sa.”

**“Vrepit Sa.”**

Communications were cut. “Sir,” Dazer looked concerned, “are… are we really going to try and capture her?”

“Without her working with the paladins, Voltron cannot be formed. And Pidge belongs to… in the empire.” Sendak informed. “Prepare to land and keep us undetected.”

“Yes… sir.” Dazer nodded slowly, doing as he was instructed. As he was ordered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, rain. Letting the cadet trio learn and experience rain. And have a good time, too. They'll need it since Sendak's up to something. As usual.   
> Well! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Until next time!


	60. Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rain was soft and peaceful. A storm is a force to be cautious of but is as natural and beautiful as the rain. Both run in spirit within the green paladin.

“Sire...” Haggar looked to Zarkon, gently touching his face. “Your efforts. Your hard work. But the Alteans still live.” Zarkon didn’t stir. “But don’t worry. I will help you to be strong again. You will finally rid the universe of them. Alfor’s legacy. Then you can take Voltron back.”

Haggar put her fingertips to either side of Zarkon’s head. She looked ahead to see a sort of armor, more massive than the Galra himself. “You will stand strong. You will truly rule the universe, my emperor.” As the witch focused her magic, lights on the armor started to glow. Then Zarkon’s eyes flung open, glowing far more than usual. “Your empire needs you.”

-+-+-+-

Alteans. Not just a handful of them, but an entire community. Dozens. Hundreds. They were there, alive, and thriving, doing their best to survive and keep their planet safe. Seeing them, meeting them, Allura was so happy. Ecstatic. She had dreamed that she would find Alteans again, growing even more hopeful to meet them when she met Lotor, and there she was. Living the dream. But it wasn’t a dream.

It was reality.

Pidge watched the princess and smiled. “She’s happy meeting her people.”

“Were you this happy when you met the others?” Kullo asked, meaning about Pidge meeting other humans. Pidge looked down. “Pidge?”

“I was confused. And hostile.” Pidge admitted. “I’d never seen another human before then. And I was still working for the empire. So...” She then smiled. “But… when I came to my senses, I was happy to be with them. I was happy to be human like them. Except when I got sick. That just sucked.” She then looked over to see Allura talking with others. The rain had stopped a while ago so everyone got to stay outside so they could meet the princess. They also met the paladins after the lions were brought out for people to see. “In a way… I guess I can understand her happiness.”

“Alone in what you were, then you suddenly find others like yourself. Sounds right.” Drek stated. “I think it’s great. And I’m glad they’re here and okay. Zarkon tried to eliminate them. But here they are. Alteans still exist. Bastard failed.” And that is what amused and pleased the group.

Pidge kept watching, even waving to some Alteans, especially children, when they waved to the group. Thankfully the Alteans were understanding that not all Galra were bad, Lotor and his allies were all part Galra, so they easily accepted Pidge’s friends and the Blade of Marmora. She was focused on them, glad to see how happy they were, but something caught her attention.

A flash in the sky followed by a cracking noise. This alarmed Pidge and even Drek and Kullo.

“An incoming ship?” Pidge asked.

“It could be an attack.” Drek responded.

“Team? Did you hear that?” Pidge was thankful for her armor and comms so she could contact the others. “We could have incoming enemies!” She didn’t wait for a response and ran toward her lion. She was stopped, though, when Lotor ran for her, grabbing her by the back of her armor.

“Whoa! Whoa! Hold up, little green.” Lotor yanked Pidge back.

“But it could be an attack!”

“It’s not. It’s not.” Lotor assured. There was another flash and crack. “See? It’s not an attack.”

“Huh?” Pidge looked to the side. Then it started to rain again. “What…”

“It’s a storm.” Lotor explained. Another set of flash and cracking. “Lightning. And thunder.” The trio settled down, realizing it was a natural occurrence. “There are many planets in the universe like this; I wouldn’t be surprised if your Earth has this, too.” He was amused. “Now then, there is an Altean boy about your age, give or take some phoebs, who is eager to meet you three.”

“You’re not trying to pair any of us with a boyfriend, are you?” Drek asked, suspicious of the suggestion.

“No, no, but I may have informed him of some of what Allura told me. The virus used to help take down Zarkon’s ship, cloaking. He’s very much interested in technology and was hyped to hear about you.”

“That’s mainly these two.” Drek motioned to his friends. “But an Altean they can relate to? That’s intriguing.”

“Ooh! That sounds nice.” Kullo nodded in agreement.

Pidge started to go with them, guided by Lotor’s hand on her back, but she stopped. Something was wrong. Her stopping made the others stop, too.

“Pidge?” Lotor looked down. “It’s just the storm. It’s nothing bad.”

“No… that’s not it.” Pidge looked around. “Something is wrong. It feels… off.”

“Hmm.” Lotor wasn’t sure what Pidge felt, but he knew to trust her. However, trusting her didn’t change the outcome of things. An energy projectile fired from elsewhere and hit him in the chest. He thankfully was wearing his armor and it took the hit, but the impact hurt.

“Lotor!” Pidge shouted. She checked on him.

“Nope. Nope. Don’t fuss.” Lotor sat up. “It hurt, but I’m good.” He looked around. “Something is… get down!” The others dropped as more projectile was fired. Then sentries stepped out. “Acxa! Do you copy? Get everyone to safety! We have intruders!”

**“Copy that, Lotor!”** Acxa confirmed over the comm.

“Paladins?” Lotor checked with the team.

**“We’re heading for the lions and preparing for battle!”** Allura stated.

“Right.” Lotor nodded. “Pidge, you should get to the green lion.”

“Right. On it!” Pidge confirmed as she got up. She turned to return to Green but stopped. Sendak was standing there. While they were distracted with sentries, he got into position, ready to claim the green paladin. “Sendak.” She wasted no time to call forth her bayard and activate it. She shot it at Sendak, hoping to hit and even electrocute him. Sendak, though, anticipated her attack and got the tether to wrap around his mechanical hand. Using that to his advantage, he yanked Pidge over.

Pidge splashed into a muddy puddle, but she didn’t mind. She had a fight to win. She went at Sendak, trying to strike at him after she recalled her bayard. Fierce and fiery, she was a force to reckon with. Sendak, though, had trained her in many aspects; he knew how to dodge her attacks and evade her.

“Leave her alone!” Drek snapped, going at Sendak, too. He drew his blade and tried to strike the commander, but it was blocked with his mechanical hand.

“You think that’s enough to stop me, little traitor?” Sendak snarled. He picked Drek up with ease and chucked him to the side, the Galran teen bouncing against the sodden ground. He then snarled when he felt a sharp jab and electricity coursing into him from his side. Pidge. She got him while he was distracted with Drek. Clever. She always had been, after all. But it wasn’t enough. She was close in and he grabbed hold of her with his robotic hand, pushing her into the mud more.

With Sendak’s attention on Pidge for a split moment, Lotor went in, his own sword in hand. He went at the commander who barely blocked the next attack with his other arm. He was strong enough that his hit cut into the armor; it didn’t get enough force to cut into the under armor beneath it, but it was definitely did go in.

“So one of the Alteans wants to play soldier, hmm?” Sendak growled.

“Leave now or it will be your head.” Lotor hissed.

“Not without what belongs to the empire.” Sendak snapped. He briefly let go of Pidge to grab Lotor and toss him to the side and right into Drek as the other Galran managed to try and get up. That was going to hurt in the morning. He removed the sword, tossing it to the side and turned his attention to Pidge. “You can make it end. Surrender, return to the main fleet, and the others won’t be hurt.”

“Like hell I will!” Pidge altered her bayard’s form, making it take on a staff form. She then swung it up and into Sendak’s groin, adding electricity to it like she would in the bayard’s katar-like and hookshot forms. It didn’t matter the race, many across the universe had that as a weak spot; one would think that armor would better protect there. Sendak howled in pain and staggered back. Pidge flipped herself up and over herself and got back on her feet, springing up. She smashed her weapon into his face while he was still in shock, figuratively and literally, from the first strike. She then got around him and smashed it into the back of one of his knees, making him go down on it.

Pidge made her bayard take its smaller, katar-like form. She then went in to strike once more, but she stopped short before she could hit Sendak’s throat.

_“Do you surrender?”_

_“I never surrender! Victory or tickles!”_

_“Then you chose tickles!”_

For a second, Pidge swore she heard her and Sendak from years ago. They would play fight. Though gruff and harsh at times, living by his mission, Sendak was sweet, too. He was kind. Caring. He trained with Pidge. He played with her.

“What are you waiting for?” Sendak snarled. “Do it. Victory or death.”

“It doesn’t always have to be like that...” Pidge whispered. She lowered her weapon and had it return to its default form. “You always told me that you wanted what was best for me. Is it still true? Is pushing me to either surrender myself or kill you really what’s best?” She didn’t know if she was crying or if it was the rain falling down upon them. “None of this is what’s best. Fighting you. Whatever Haggar is planning and the things she does to me. It’s not… and yet… you still keep trying.” She shook her head. “But that’s not me. I’m not a tool for her or the empire!” Nature had the right timing, thunder crashing above as she shouted. “And… neither are you...”

Sendak’s eye widened. That response was not what he really expected, not right then and there when Pidge had the chance to take him out of her misery. But he wondered if she had a point. Were they really not tools for the empire? He had served for so long, longer than most thanks to quintessence. He didn’t think he knew anything else.

No. He did know something else.

He knew his time raising Pidge.

**“Pidge? Pidge, do you copy? Lotor!”** Keith’s voice came over the comms.

“Keith? What’s wrong?” Pidge inquired.

**“We’ve got incoming. It’s big. It’s part of the empire. And I think it’s one of those monsters!”**

Pidge looked to see something come in from afar, crashing into the planet. She knew the structure of the coffin-like ship. One of Haggar’s monsters.

“Oh quiznak.” Pidge grumbled. She then glanced at Sendak. “Leave while you can. Our fight is over.” She then ran off. “Kullo! Drek! Let’s get to Green!”

“What about Sendak?” Kullo called as he ran after Pidge, Drek joining them. Lotor ran off when he heard the comms and went to get his own ship ready for combat.

“Leave him, we have more pressing matters to deal with.” Pidge ran to her lion, getting in and ready to fight whatever monster showed up.

Sendak sat there on his knees, the rain soaking his fur.

**“Commander? Commander Sendak, do you copy?”** Dazer called over the comms. **“Sir...”**

“I’m here...” Sendak muttered.

**“What are your orders, sir?”**

His orders? He looked up at the sky. Were those just the raindrops he felt? Or were they something more? Something he hadn’t felt in what felt like an eternity… “Prepare to leave. This is not our fight...”

**“Yes, sir. I’ll get the ship ready for departure.”** Dazer confirmed.

Sendak remained kneeling for a moment longer, even looking when he heard the green lion and watched it fly off to meet with the others. He watched as they formed Voltron before the monster could emerge from its case. “You’ve left the empire. You left me.” he said softly. “But why do I feel this pride? This good pride in your decision?” He sighed and shook his head. He then got up and walked off, returning to his ship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, a few days ago, Winterwanderings had an awesome comment containing "Good thing it's just rain and not thunder/lightning as that would probably freak them out.", and goodness, I was so tempted to say something because I already had this chapter planned, written, and even drawn for by the time the last one went up.  
> So! Winter, here is your storm you mentioned and the kiddos freaking out.  
> On another note, this chapter contains one of my favourite images drawn for this AU. I've had a lot over the months (gods, it feels like years, but it hasn't been that long), but this one turned out to be one of my faves because of working with lighting and, well, lightning. I love showing Pidge and Sendak interacting one way or another and this was wonderful.  
> Well, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. And I hope you look forward to the next. Until next time.


	61. A Paladin's Compassion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The new robeast emerges from its "coffin" to fight the paladins. Seeing it, Pidge knows automatically what the witch of the Empire did.

“Pidge, are you going to be okay?” Drek asked as they got to the green lion, Pidge settling down in her seat. “That fight with Sendak...”

“He doesn’t control me. I made sure he knew I won’t be used anymore.” Pidge assured. “Besides, that new monster is priority.” She got the lion moved, joining up with the others before the creature could emerge. They were quick to form Voltron and prepare for battle, staying away from the Altean town in order to help make sure they weren’t hurt or killed.

**“So any ideas on what this next monster is?”** Hunk asked.

**“Whatever it is, we’ll take it down like we’ve taken down the others.”** Keith assured.

The monster emerged from the coffin-like transport ship. Massive, as to be expected. Parts of the armor glowed from quintessence and it even had large canisters of the substance on its back.

Then Pidge realized something.

“Oh quiznak...”

**“Pidge? What’s the matter?”** Allura asked.

“Haggar always uses another life to turn into her monsters.” Pidge informed the others. “That’s where she gets them, she dabbles in freaky druid magic and quintessence to creates them. This one… this one’s Zarkon.”

**“Wait, are you sure?!”** Lance exclaimed. **“Damn, that woman’s got some problems.”**

**“It doesn’t matter; we can take him down.”** Keith assured.

“Just be careful.” Kullo chimed. “That’s a lot of quintessence with him; he’s going to be really strong.”

“Wait… that could be it!” Pidge perked up.

**“What could?”** Allura asked.

“The quintessence! If we can break those canisters and drain them of the quintessence, he won’t have as much to power up on.” Pidge informed.

**“Yeah but I don’t think he’s going to let us attack those easily.”** Hunk reminded. **“Even if we do ask nicely.”**

**“Then how about we** _ **ask**_ **for you?”** Lotor suggested. Three ships came into view. They were Lotor’s Sincline ships that he had made from the comet. **“If you engage him in combat and keep him occupied, we can attack those canisters for you.”**

**“Great planning guys!”** Keith praised. **“Okay, team! Let’s do this!”**

With the help of Lotor’s team, the paladins were sure they had this. They kept the Zarkon monster, robeast as Hunk had been calling him, occupied on them, drawing their sword and forming their shield. The robeast, though, was not backing down too easily. As to be expected of the emperor and a trained warrior, even if he was in a rather new form, he was a strong fighter.

And he was still, deep inside, Zarkon.

He still attempted to take control of the black lion, even with Keith as its paladin. Keith, though, pushed through, keeping his hold on the lion. While Zarkon, even in his current state of being a robeast, still tried to stop them by seizing the black lion, Keith’s bond was stronger. It was always growing and he planned on standing strong through it.

However, there was another force that tried to take them down.

The green lion started to freeze up.

**“Pidge? Are you okay?”** Allura asked. When the green lion had a problem, the others knew it meant Haggar was up to something. And, most likely, the witch was near.

Pidge shook her head and tried to breathe. “I won’t be weak. I won’t… surrender.” she hissed.

“Pidge, you’ve got this.” Kullo reminded. “You told Sendak that you weren’t a tool to the empire. You hold onto that.”

“That’s right...” Pidge nodded. “I’m not a tool.” Her grip tightened on the controls. “And I won’t let Haggar have control over me!” She got movement back and slammed her lion into the Zarkon robeast, activating Green’s mouth cannon and shooting at him.

_“That’s my girl.”_ came Trigel’s gentle voice in the back of Pidge’s mind. Hearing it, Pidge smiled, proud.

**“Hell yeah! Good work, Pidge!”** Hunk praised.

**“Lotor, how are you and the others doing?”** Keith inquired.

**“We’re applying enough damage, one of those canisters are broken and drained.”** Lotor reported as he went around with his team, the three ships focusing on Zarkon’s back.

**“Make that two.”** Acxa updated them.

**“Then he should be weaker.”** Keith told the others. **“Lance! Form sword!”**

**“Copy that!”** Lance announced. He had shoved his bayard into its port and Voltron had the sword. They went at Zarkon with full force, but the robeast was not backing down. Though the quintessence fueling him was lower, he was still stronger.

**“Okay, guys, I don’t think this is working! Zarkon’s still kicking our butts!”** Hunk whined.

**“Team, back off a bit. Hunk, use your bayard!”** Keith instructed.

They did. The sword was gone and Hunk shoved his bayard into its port. Though the cannon was great for multiple targets, it was still good on single targets, hitting it with several projectile. The attack, though, didn’t work as well as they hoped.

**“He’s still standing! Just how much did Haggar fuel him with?”** Allura inquired.

“Way too much.” Pidge grumbled. She then stopped and looked. “Guys? My port’s glowing big time.”

**“Yeah, mine too.”** Lance chimed in.

**“Then let’s do it.”** Keith told them.

Lance and Pidge activated their bayards, getting them to bring out two swords. Though smaller, there were two. And hopefully powerful enough. Voltron went at Zarkon again and fought more, hoping to take him down. It took several hits, but they were making progress. Then they finally pierced through the robeast’s armor. They flung Zarkon over themselves and slammed him into the ground.

Though they backed off from the robeast, they were still on guard. They waited until those lights were out and they knew for certain Zarkon had truly and finally been defeated.

The lions parted and landed near the robeast. Once down, Pidge sighed and slumped in her seat. She looked up and smiled when she felt her friends place their hands on her shoulders.

“You did it, Pidge.” Kullo said. “You got past Haggar once and for all.”

“Yeah.” Pidge nodded. She then looked to the robeast, a sad look in her eyes. “You know… he was a bad person. But… in the end he was just a tool to that witch, too...”

**“Pidge, what’s wrong?”** Keith asked.

“As bad as he was… Zarkon doesn’t deserve to just… disappear. Can… can we at least give him a sort of burial? Or funeral pyre?”

The others were silent, unsure of things. But it was Allura who finally spoke. **“Pidge is right.”** she told the others. **“And though he had done bad… he wasn’t always bad.”**

A pyre was set up. Zarkon, as still as when Pidge saw him when she was captured the last time, truly dead this time. As though the robeast exterior was a ship or mech-suit, his body was still inside; they had him removed for his final ceremony. She watched as the flames were set, putting the emperor and warrior down for his final rest.

“Pidge?” Allura put a gentle hand on the green paladin’s shoulder. “Are you okay?”

“I never bonded with him like I did some of the others in the empire.” Pidge admitted. “But even so… he wasn’t exactly cruel. Especially compared to Haggar and the druids. He showed a lot pride in me, always reminding me that I would one day serve the empire and fight at his side. And though he did a lot of bad things, especially destroying and conquering planets and ruining lives, he was still a person.” It wasn’t exactly the best eulogy, but it was something. “I don’t know what made him so cruel… he was probably a good person since he had a wife and child at one point.” She cast a glance to Lotor, wondering how he held it all together. Perhaps it was because he was never close with his father?

“He didn’t deserve what Haggar did to him. Reduced to a robeast.” Pidge sighed. She then rubbed her face, realizing she was tearing up. “I don’t get it. I didn’t like him but… I can’t actually bring myself to hate him, can I? Why? Why do I feel sorry for what happened to him?”

Allura smiled softly and hugged Pidge. “Because you’re a kind soul.” she said. “You’re a warrior, but you’re also caring. You don’t want others to suffer.” She kissed the top of Pidge’s head. “This is what it is to be a paladin.” She continued to hug Pidge as she watched the flames. “And now Zarkon can rest, unable to hurt anyone… and unable to be hurt anymore.”

“Now what?” Hunk asked. “With Zarkon… laid to rest,” he didn’t want to sound insensitive, so he hoped he chose his words right, “that means the empire is over, right? We can truly work on peace?”

“It… depends.” Pidge stated. “By tradition, they’d have the Kral Zera, an event where eligible candidates fight for the right to be the next emperor or empress.” Raised in the empire, she of course knew this part to Galran history. “But… I don’t know how well it would go. It’s been a long time and there could be a tip in balance… but it won’t be held for another movement, giving the others time to grieve and prepare once word it spread.”

“Our mission still stands to liberate the universe.” Keith stated. “About the Kral Zera, we’ll figure out what to do.”

-+-+-+-

“High Priestess Haggar,” a commander spoke as she looked to the witch, “Emperor Zarkon...”

“Is gone. Yes.” Haggar sighed.

“And the empire’s paladin…”

“I will have her returned to the empire, have no doubt about that.” Haggar nodded. She had a plan playing in her mind and she was certain she knew what to do. “Send word of our emperor’s death. We must prepare for the Kral Zera.”

“Of course.” The commander stood tall, performing the Galran salute. “Vrepit Sa.”

Haggar nodded and looked off to seemingly nothing as the commander departed, heading to send out word. “Enjoy your freedom while you can.” the witch spoke softly. “You’ll be back where you belong. I’ve invested too much into you to give up this easily.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Readers of one of my other fics, A Meeting of Forces, may recognize a bit of the battle against a robeast, having two teams to help. Yup. I actually didn't fully know how I'd go about this one until I remembered writing that in AMoF.   
> Anyway! I hope you guys enjoyed this next chapter!  
> Until next time!


	62. Commander Sendak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After his fight with Pidge, Sendak is left to his thoughts and memories.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warning**  
>  This chapter has an image that does depict blood. It also gets a little more swearing from Sendak. It's not much in both regards really, but I felt that it would be best to warn you.

_“I’m not a tool for her or the empire. And neither are you.”_

The words still echoed in Sendak’s mind. He thought about what Pidge told him. He thought about Pidge.

Little Pidge, a brave and tough warrior. She stood strong. But she was also a child. She had always shown that over the years. From her undying curiosity to her love of toys, even to how she would respond to the arena. He remembered taking her there before to meet with Zarkon and view a fight. She ran off crying, not liking the violence.

_“I don’t like it! Papa, I don’t like the fighting.” Pidge cried as Haxus hugged her, trying to comfort her. She had been found by Throk and Thace, the two noticing her crying as she tried to hide. Throk saw to it that she was returned to the commander and his lieutenant._

_“It’s okay, Pidge. You won’t be fighting in the arena.” Haxus assured, rocking the girl in his arms._

_“I don’t like seeing them fight...”_

_Sendak sighed. “It’s how things are around here.” he reminded. “The arena is a form of entertainment. Even other Galra fight to prove their strength.”_

_“Killing isn’t fun!” Pidge wailed._

_“Commander...” Haxus watched Sendak for a moment._

_Sendak sighed. “When summoned there, we go.” he told the little paladin. “But… you don’t have to watch. I’m sure other soldiers can find better ways to entertain you. Even Throk knew how to get candy and toys for you.”_

_“I don’t have to see it?” Pidge whimpered._

_“You don’t.” Sendak reached over and gently wiped a tear from Pidge’s face, letting it soak into the fur on his finger._

Even then, he was soft on her. He didn’t like to think of himself as soft, he had been a part of the empire for a long time, ever since Zarkon rose to power. But there he was, thousands of years later and caring for a child. Even though she turned her back on him and the empire, he still found himself caring.

He continued to be soft. He had opportunities to take her back to the empire, to turn her over to Haggar so she could be reminded of her place. But each time he failed to do so. He failed, right? Sendak hated thinking of it, but not every mission ended in success. But could these attempts be failures, too? Perhaps on Olkarion, yes, but when Pidge was ill and he let the others take her. And this time.

_I’m not a tool for her or the empire._

Sendak looked to his arm. A tool. It was designed for his use. It was a tool, but he was not. Right? He flexed the mechanical fingers. As he watched, he thought back to his time. He did as told, just as his robotic limb did. He didn’t ask questions or talk back, just like that arm. He didn’t question anything other than what Pidge was thinking when she started acting rebellious or made such friends.

“I’m a loyal soldier to the Galran empire.” he reminded himself. “But then why… why am I sitting here questioning this? Questioning my life… and feeling so proud of Pidge for her betrayal?”

Why indeed. His mind kept asking it. He then thought about their fight. She fought full force against him, ready to take him down. She was ready for the kill as he trained her to be. He was ready to die by her hand like a soldier.

But when she stopped, he felt a sort of relief. She didn’t kill him and he was relieved. She bested him, got him down on one knee, and he was proud. He was proud of his little warrior.

“You truly found something to fight for, didn’t you?”

He closed his eye, trying to imagine what Pidge would say. Instead, though, he was met with a memory.

_“Daddy!” Pidge cheered as she hugged him around his legs._

_Sendak looked down in confusion. A part of him felt happy, his ears even twitched. But then he remembered he was a soldier. His purpose was to fight for the empire, his mission to raise the paladin in the name of Galra. He moved his leg to nudge her away. “Do not call me that. You are to address me appropriately.”_

_“Huh? Why?” Pidge often asked that question. She always wanted answers, even if she possibly wouldn’t understand them._

_“That is the order of things.”_

_“Papa don’t mind.”_

_“I’m not the lieutenant, though. I outrank him as the commander.”_

_“Okay...”_

Sendak opened his eye. She wanted a father. She needed one. In way he was one, even now that he thought about it. But he kept himself distant as much as possible. Would she be more loyal had he been better at his parental role?

“Yeah right.” the commander scoffed. “She’s always been strong willed and defiant. That’s why she had no reserve in starting a fight on her first day of training camp.” He smirked at that thought. He remembered getting the call about her behaviour, how she jumped another Galran and scratched him up pretty badly; it was where she got some of her scars. She was so proud of that fight, standing up for herself. And he was proud, too. He couldn’t get mad at her despite her insubordinate action.

_“Sendak, can’t you just look at me?” a voice, a more recent memory, echoed. “Can’t you see how much has changed? And it’s not because of how I was raised. The things Haggar has done… the experiments, the magic… it hurt so much… and each time it broke a little bit of me away… chipped away like a planet drained of its quintessence… and you just blindly send me back because you believe everything Zarkon and Haggar tell you...”_

Sendak remembered those words. Pidge told him that before she got worse with feeling ill. He was finally able to see that part, but he was blind to her true needs. To her safety. To her desires.

“Blind...” he muttered, gently touching the mechanical eye. “I truly was blind, wasn’t it?” He gritted his teeth and dug his claws into the mechanism and skin around it. “Dammit!” He finally dug further and ripped out the robotic piece, tossing it to the side with blood hitting the floor and wall. “Fuck!” He was standing and pacing a bit. “Fuck...” He pushed his back to the wall and slid down to sit. He reached to grab his arm, ready to rip it off. The empire? What did they fight for? Surely not their people. Power. And he was blind to think it was all in the name of Galra. The only thing about the Galra was that the Galrans served the empire. But no. Zarkon only wanted power and Haggar kept him on that track.

“That bitch...” He let go of his arm. He wanted to remove that prosthetic, wanting to chuck it to the side. But he knew he would need it. If he was going to find his place again, be the warrior he once was and fighting for a true purpose, he would need it. If he was going to protect Pidge from Haggar like he failed to do before, then he would need it.

“Pidge… I’m so sorry...”

Sendak did the thing he didn’t expect to do and this time he couldn’t blame the rain. On one side of his face, blood clung to his fur. On the other, tears. He actually cried and he couldn’t deny it. He didn’t feel the desire to deny it, either.

“You needed someone to protect you… and I turned my back on you… just as I turned my back on what the empire used to have.” Sendak pulled his arms up onto his knees and buried his face into them, crying more. There he was, as old as he was, strong, grizzled, stubborn… and upset.

“Commander? Commander Sendak, is all well?” came Dazer’s voice from the other side of the door. Sendak didn’t respond. “Commander, I heard you shout.” He was silent. “I’m going to come in, sir. Pardon my intrusion.” Dazer entered the room, the door sliding open. He then gasped when he saw the blood. “Commander!”

Dazer ran over and knelt in front of Sendak to check on him, even getting him to lift his head enough for him to get a clear view. He saw the blood, but he also saw the tears. “Sir...”

“Leave it.”

“But your eye…”

“I don’t need it.” Sendak shook his head. “It was supposed to help me see. But it only made me more blind...”

“You should at least allow me to provide medical treatment, sir.” Dazer pressed. “It could keep bleeding or get infected.”

Sendak sighed, giving in to that. He carefully got up. “After that, I’m departing.”

“Where to, sir?”

“Just me.”

“Sir… as your lieutenant...”

“I’m leaving the empire.”

“Because of the paladin?” Dazer looked genuinely curious, though his eyes seemed to show that he expected it. Hoped for it? “Then I shall accompany you.”

“What?” That caught the commander by surprise; his good eye widened in response. “You know what happens to traitors when caught. I’m willing to take the risk myself, but I will not drag another down with me.”

“I understand, but this is serious to you. And frankly, you won’t get far without much assistance.” Dazer reminded. “You may be a skilled warrior, but in running anything else…” He trailed off and half-smiled. As skilled as Sendak was, he was also helpless in some regards. Some commanders did well without a lieutenant at their sides, but others like Sendak needed the help, even if they didn’t want to admit it. “Besides, it’s good to have someone who has your back.”

Sendak eyed his lieutenant before sighing. “Fine. Do as you wish.” He staggered a bit, feeling a bit dizzy. It was most likely due to the blood loss.

“Come, sir, let’s get you treated.” Dazer supported his commander. “Then we can figure out the next plan of action.”


	63. Making Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge, Drek, and Kullo make a new friend among the Alteans, hitting it off rather well.  
> Haggar, though, has some plans brewing in her twisted mind, ready to take Pidge back to the empire.

Bandor was a young Altean male who loved learning about new technology. He sat with Pidge, Drek, and Kullo under some trees in a grassy area. They were away from the town and even the castle, enjoying the fresh air and going over information on data tablets.

“Wow!” Bandor looked amazed as he checked out the data Pidge compiled about Shiro’s arm that she designed. “This is truly amazing work! And you designed it yourself?”

“I mean, I’ve seen others all my life, kinda studied them and such, so it was pretty easy to figure out.” Pidge responded. She chuckled. “Maybe I should go remove his arm real quick and bring it here for you to check out.” she teased. That got the others to start laughing.

“You know,” Kullo spoke up, “we can always check out the transport pods. Pidge found a way to work with cloaking technology for them so they can be invisible. And for the green lion, too.”

“It wasn’t just all me.” Pidge hummed. “I got it by reverse engineering the invisible maze on the training deck.”

“To take something geared for training and apply it to a ship, though? That’s amazing!” Bandor exclaimed, looking positively excited at that idea. “And they’re completely hidden, too?”

“If you know the energy signature to track, then no. But not all know what to look for, especially the empire so it’s easy to hide.” Pidge informed. “I don’t know fully how long it lasts on the pods, and I’m improving on it with Green, so it now lasts longer than thirty ticks.” She grinned brightly. “I’m even trying to work on a way for Voltron to be cloaked, too.”

“Wait… you are?” Drek was astonished to hear that. “When were you going to tell us? That’s so cool!”

“Well, I’m still working things out, so it’s not yet ready.” Pidge chuckled a bit as she rubbed the back of her head.

“That’s still really cool.” Bandor pointed out. “The fact that it’s something you can not only think about but also try to put it to practice, developing the technology and applying it? It’s really remarkable.”

“What about you?” Pidge asked. “You’re so interested in technology, surely you’ve come up with some things, right?”

“Well, I’m still learning.” Bandor admitted. “I mean, Lotor let me sit in and help out a bit with his ships, but… I didn’t come up with anything there. I just learned about what they were doing.” He looked a little embarrassed. “I’ve always been interested, but… I haven’t had many learning opportunity. But you guys… it’s amazing. You’re the same age as me, yet you’re capable of so much, have developed and worked with a lot. Even making that virus that shut down Zarkon’s ship?”

Drek smiled softly. “That’s because it was impossible for any commander to keep those two out of technology and from learning. And they had a lot of exposure.” he said. “I bet around them, you’d get to experience and learn so much, you’ll learn a lot in a short amount of time.”

“You really think so?” Bandor looked hopeful. “That would be wonderful.” He then looked curious. “What about you? You don’t seem as interested in tech.”

“I’m not. I mean, a little, I’m mainly supportive of Pidge and Ku, though.” Drek responded with a shrug. “Well, except for video games. Since being shown that? Now that interests me.”

“Video games?” Bandor was even more curious.

“Yeah! Apparently it’s common on my home planet, Earth, not that I’d really know, I’ve not been there before.” Pidge spoke up. “But it’s this fun device. There are all sorts of games. It’s great competitiveness without actual fighting or anything, too. At least one of the ones we like. Even Kullo enjoys it. And he doesn’t like fighting.”

“Especially Pidge; she was scary when she first fought Drek.” Kullo chimed. “How about we introduce Bandor to video games then, hmm?”

“How about lunch first, huh kids?” The group looked over to see an older male Altean walk towards them, a basket hanging from his arm.

“Oh! Hi, Avok!” Bandor cheered. “Guys, this is Avok, my older brother!” He looked back at his brother. “These are Pidge, Drek, and Kullo. Lotor introduced us!”

“Glad to see Bandor finally making friends.” Avok mused.

“Hey, I have friends.” Bandor pouted.

“Mm-hmm.” Avok shrugged and set the basket down. “Romelle fixed you guys a picnic.”

“Oooh!” Kullo’s ears and tail twitched. He liked the idea of a snack and he could already tell that it was going to be good judging by the scents.

They set out the food, happy to sit together, eat, and continue chatting. The group of teens decided after their snack, they would go and introduce Bandor to video games. Seeing them interact, Avok was amused. It was good to see his brother befriending others his own age, two out of three even having similar interests. It was nice to know that they could get along quick.

“I like making friends like this.” Kullo said as he bit into a slice of some sort of fruit pie. “This is much easier than how we first met Pidge.”

“You guys didn’t hit it off as easily?” Bandor inquired.

“Remember that comment about Pidge first fighting Drek?” Bandor nodded in response to Kullo’s question. “Yeah. That was the day we first met. And she tackled him to the ground and scratched him up. She even bit him. I mean, he scratched at her, too. And he did deserve it since he was making fun of Pidge.” Kullo chuckled. “It was frightening, but it was definitely an impression. Thankfully we started getting along with her after that and became close friends.”

“Yeah, that’s where these and these,” Drek pointed to his cheek and arm, “came from. Pidge’s mirrors mine.” He sounded amused as he brought that up. “She was definitely a fighter. Still is, too.”

“Hey, I’m at a disadvantage with my size, even compared to other humans.” Pidge reminded with a laugh. “I gotta know how to fight so I can defend myself.”

“That wasn’t just a fight. I swear my life flashed before my eyes.” Drek reminded. “You just tackling me… and the commanders struggled to get us apart.”

“I did my best. Even Papa was proud of me.” Pidge smiled brightly. Sendak was also proud, but she kept herself from mentioning that part. “Papa worried about me keeping up with others my age since I was smaller and a different species, but I did well.”

“That day was a good sign that the commanders were going to hate working with us.” Kullo snickered.

“At least it doesn’t sound like things were boring with you three around.” Avok commented, amused by the story he was told.

-+-+-+-

Alteans. Haggar didn’t think she would see another Altean again, but there she was on the planet they came to call home, hiding from the empire. And led by Lotor. The half-Altean son of Zarkon.

But none of that mattered. All that mattered was Pidge. Haggar invested too much time, too much energy, and too much power to give up on the green paladin that easily. One way or another, she planned on taking Pidge back. And using her, she planned on taking out the other paladins. Last time didn’t go so well, though; they managed to get through to her and bring her back. And Haggar didn’t know if she could break the girl again.

At least not easily.

At least not at first.

An idea formed itself in Haggar’s mind. And it was made clear as she saw the others there with Pidge, even the two Alteans.

Haggar made sure no one else was near. Once sure of things, she decided to make herself known, utilizing her druid magic to suddenly appear in the middle of the group, startling them.

“Haggar!” Pidge hissed as she jumped back and reached for her weapon. She stopped. _Oh quiznak._ She realized that she made a dire mistake. She was in her casual clothes and forgot to carry her bayard with her. It was in the green lion, ready to go just in case. She was left unarmed except for her own fighting power, but she knew better than to fight Haggar in hand-to-hand combat.

While Pidge was unarmed, Avok was not. Though Pollux was a relatively safe place, many were trained for combat and Avok was one of them. He drew out a sword, pulling Kullo, who he was closer to, over and behind him.

“Oh, a little warrior.” Haggar smirked. She wasted no time in removing him as a threat, casting her magic and electrocuting him. Purple static surrounded him and he cried out in pain. “It’s best to surrender; it hurts less that way.”

“Avok!” Bandor cried out, worried for his brother.

Drek pulled Pidge back and behind him, trying to protect her. “Pidge, get help.” he whispered harshly.

Pidge nodded and tried to run off. But Haggar was quicker. She was immediately in front of Pidge, catching her off guard. Before anyone could retaliate, before they could even speak, she used her magic once more, electrocuting all of them, making them collapse to the ground.

“You… bitch...” Pidge managed to bite out as she tried to fight back. “Leave them… alone...”

Haggar knelt in front of Pidge, releasing her magic for a moment. She took hold of Pidge’s face and forced her to look her up at her. “They will be of use to me, especially if I am to ensure you come back to me. And stay where you belong.”

“I will never belong to you or the empire.” Pidge hissed. “I’m not some tool for you to use.”

“Pity that you haven’t come to terms with your role in this universe.” Haggar sighed. She stood back up and electrocuted the group once more until the pain made them all lose consciousness. “Now then… time to return you to where you belong. And make you remember your place… and punish you for what you did to your emperor.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just can't give Pidge a break, can I?   
> Well! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter.  
> Until next time!


	64. Dark Magic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Pidge, Drek, Kullo, Bandor, and Avok captured by Haggar, the empire's high priestess has one more plan up her sleeve to force Pidge back into being loyal to the empire once and for all. Haggar will stop at nothing to win... and Pidge will stop at nothing to get away. But one will have to lose in the end.

Thace stared in shock at the area. When Pidge and the others didn’t respond, especially after Avok went to check on them and even deliver a picnic to them, some of the others went to look for them. They found the area, thanks to Romelle, where the others should have been. What should have been signs of a happy picnic, though, were in fact that of a fight.

The Blade of Marmora agent checked the ground, seeing the grass singed and the dirt marred. He knew very well what this was.

“What happened? Was it Sendak again?” Keith asked. Sendak always had a way of showing up to take Pidge back.

“If it was, he wasn’t alone. But I get the feeling that it wasn’t him.” Thace admitted. “This is signs of druid magic.”

The others were in shock at that. Romelle, though shocked, was also confused. “What do you mean by _druid_?” she inquired. “What is that?”

“Beings who serve the empire and use magic for Zarkon.” Thace stated. “The worse of them is the leader of the druids and the high priestess herself, Haggar.” He stood up, his fingers tracing over some scorched marks across the ground. “In a different way from Sendak, Haggar would be relentless in getting Pidge back.” He looked concerned. “She put in a lot of work to ensure Pidge was strong and loyal to the empire… but it didn’t go well since Pidge found her own way… Haggar isn’t going to give up.”

“But what about the others? And my brothers?” Romelle covered her mouth in shock. “They’re not here.”

“Haggar probably took them as well as Drek and Kullo.” Krolia stated.

“But why?” Keith looked over to his mother.

“To use them against Pidge, to make her break.” Krolia responded. “She used Sam to make her break before… she’ll undoubtedly use the others, too. Especially since she has a bond with the kits.”

“We need to get back to the castle; we can’t waste time in going after them.” Keith didn’t waste any in running off, wanting to report back to the others and leave. They had lost Pidge before when they couldn’t get to her in time, they lost her several times since finding her initially, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to let her down again. He feared what would happen if they lost her once more, if Haggar took control and had it her way.

He was afraid that they would never be able to get Pidge back on a mental level. There was only so much anyone could handle, even a small human who was trained and raised to be a warrior.

When they got back to the castle, even calling Lotor to join them, the others relayed what they assumed happen judging by the area and lack of the kids and Avok. Hearing the news, the others were worried and even upset.

Shiro looked to his mechanical hand. A gift from Pidge and it did him well. As he gazed at it, he thought of his promise to always bring her back. They were a team. She was part of their Voltron family.

And they kept losing her. He didn’t want to believe it, but sometimes he wondered if this was some sort of messed up message from fate, something out there telling them that they would never be able to protect their friend. Their youngest and smallest paladin.

“Shiro?” Lance looked over to the former paladin. “What’s wrong?”

“We just keep losing her, don’t we?” Shiro asked, bitterness in his tone. “We can’t give up on her, though. We have to get Pidge back. And the others.”

“I agree.” Allura nodded. “It’ll be risky, odds are we’ll be going back to the main ship, but that’s where Haggar would be, and therefore where we would find Pidge.”

“I want to assist.” Lotor spoke up. “Not only did they take your own, but two of the Alteans from here have also been captured.

Allura smiled fondly, appreciative of Lotor’s desire to help, but she also worried about the other Alteans. Clearly the enemy knew of their whereabouts; if Lotor left, they would perhaps be vulnerable. “We can’t trust the druids or Haggar; they could also be lying in wait to take down the other Alteans, our people.” the princess reminded him. “You need to be here to defend the others, to defend this planet.”

Lotor scowled, but even he couldn’t deny that Allura had a very good point. “Please, do your best out there to bring the others back.” He looked to the other team members, seeing the scars they sported. “Bring everyone back.”

“Before you go,” Romelle spoke up, “I don’t know how I’d be able to help, but I can’t just sit around on Pollux and wait for information.” She looked almost desperate. Hopeful? “Please, allow me to go with you.”

Lotor gave Allura a hopeful look. He didn’t seem too much harm in it and Romelle was understandably worried for her brothers. Romelle nodded. “Okay.” she said. “But if anyone orders you to stay back, I hope you listen.”

“Of course.” Romelle smiled. “Thank you.”

“Then we need to get going.” Allura informed. “And be ready to strike to get Pidge back.”

-+-+-+-

Pidge grumbled as she came to. She thought back to what happened, trying to recall the details. Magic. Pain.

Haggar.

Pidge wanted to jump up in realization, sit up in shock. But her body felt heavy and she was exhausted. She managed to push herself up off the cold ground, looking to see she wasn’t wearing the fingerless gloves she liked. No, she was wearing a different sort of outfit. It was primarily black and pink, different from the last time she was put into a different outfit.

Pidge slowly looked around, her head pounding. She then saw the others. Drek, Kullo, Bandor, and Avok. They were all lying on the floor on the other side of the room. She pushed away any soreness and lightheadedness and got to her feet, running over to them. “Drek? Ku! Bandor?” She got them to stir and slowly sit up.

“Ugh… what just happened?” Bandor asked, rubbing his had. “I feel tingly… and not in a good way...”

“Druid magic… damn...” Drek mumbled. He shook his head. He then looked around. “Oh… quiznak...” He realized that they were captured.

“Where are we?” Avok asked. “Is everyone okay?”

“Sore but…” Kullo rubbed his arms a bit. “Oh no… I think we’re on the empire’s main flagship… Central Command.”

“This isn’t good.” Drek tried to get up, but he fell back down when there was a burst of magic shot toward the group. He then looked in alarm when Pidge started screaming. “No! Pidge!” He tried to grab for her, but the magic was used to fling her away from the group, making her skid across the floor.

Avok’s older brother instincts kicked in. He got to his feet and ran for Pidge, wanting to keep her safe along with the others. He stopped when he was struck next with magic, the pain and power forcing him to his knees.

“I was betting on you running for her. It seems you don’t care that you just met little Pidge, you desire keeping her safe.” Haggar stepped out, making herself known. “Some may see it as endearing, but it is foolish in the end and will be your downfall.” She looked to Pidge. “If you had just stayed where you belonged, this wouldn’t have to happen. But you’ve given me no choice.”

“Don’t touch them, you bitch!” Pidge snapped as she struggled to get to her feet. She then looked around when the area was illuminated more. From her position, she could see Haggar’s smirk gleaming from under her hood. That expression did not sit well with her. Pidge then felt a weight in her gut and the feeling she should look back. When she looked behind her, she saw some sort of mechanical structure. A large, Voltron-sized robot. More than that? She knew it was for one of the witch’s monsters.

Before Pidge could say anything about it, she was engulfed in the electrifying magic, the sensation, though literally shocking her, feeling like the grip of a massive hand holding onto her. She let out a cry as she writhed, trying to find some way out of there; or perhaps it was just her muscles reacting to the electricity.

Using her magic, Haggar slammed Pidge into what looked like a sort of pod; it had started to close around her, keeping her in place. Pidge struggled and tried to wriggle her way out of it, but it wasn’t working. She was unable to get free.

“What the hell are you thinking?” Drek called to Haggar. “That’s going to kill her!” Drek didn’t know for certain, but he had a bad feeling. He had a bit of an idea of what the monsters were and how they were made and he was sure it could kill Pidge. He didn’t exactly expect Haggar to be the caring sort, but he did hope she cared enough about using Pidge to not want her dead.

Haggar smirked. She knew the probability of death and she had a plan to hopefully counteract that. She held her hand out to Avok, activating her magic again, though this one the electricity. The floor beneath him started to glow as what appeared to be a magic circle formed. Avok’s eye’s widened, realizing he had stepped into a trap without even knowing. He tried to get away, but the magic was fully activated and pain filled him.

Hearing his brother cry out in pain, Bandor tried to lunge forward, either wanting to go and protect his brother or move to stop Haggar. Drek, though, knew this couldn’t end well if Bandor put himself in harm’s way, so he grabbed hold of him.

“No! Let me go!” Bandor cried. “Avok!” He looked to see his brother, the Altean’s shouting dying down as he did his best to stand his ground, unable to move to escape. His eyes widened when he saw Avok’s strained but gentle smile.

“Just stay back, Bandor; I don’t want… I don’t want you getting hurt.” He struggled to get the words out, but he hoped they were enough for his brother. He then looked to Haggar, a glare settling on his features. “Why? Why are… you doing this…?” he managed to ask.

“Because, the little traitor is right, my plan will kill Pidge. And she has much more left to do for me.” Haggar actually said, not minding. Who would they tell? How would any of them stop her. “If this goes well, I’ll only need your help. The others… will make perfect prisoners to keep her compliant. Not that I plan on her deviating.” Haggar held her hand, palm out, towards Avok. She then slowly closed in her fingers.

“Voltron… and Lotor will… stop you.” Avok pointed out. “You won’t… take any… of these… kids...”

Haggar nearly faltered. Lotor. Zarkon’s child. The child of…

She pushed the thought away. She then snapped her hand shut more and Avok gave a final cry of pain as the glow around him brightened. The glow was suddenly gone, as was Avok. This left the group of teens stare in shock. They didn’t understand what happened, at least until they noticed a glowing ball of energy concentrated in the palm of Haggar’s hand.

Quintessence.

Avok’s own quintessence.

It was bright and a bluish shade, showing its uniqueness of being Altean. Feeling it, Haggar felt something familiar. Something nostalgic. Energy from the past.

With her free hand, she pulled down her hood, showing her bluish skin. Then the blue faded away, becoming a soft tanned complexion. Her eyes, previously all yellow, went to golden irises with purplish pupils. Seeing her, the others then knew.

“You’re… Altean too?” Bandor asked in shock. He then glared. “What did you do to my brother!?”

“I reduced him to nothing more than the pure quintessence that filled him.” Haggar stated. “All life is made of quintessence, even Voltron. And that of Alteans, due to their unique abilities of manipulating it, have a special strength to theirs. Never in all this time did I expect to feel it again. To be reminded of my life from when I was Honerva.”

“Honerva?” Kullo blinked. “Then you’re...”

“It’s been so long since I’ve seen my son… I don’t even recall properly holding him when he was just a baby.” Haggar, no, Honerva sighed. “But that is not important. What is...” She looked to where Pidge was, the paladin still struggling to get loose. “It’s best to give up and settle down, otherwise this will only hurt worse.”

Pidge, though, didn’t want to settle down. She didn’t want to give up. Until either one of them gave their final breath, she was not going to stop fighting.

Honerva didn’t care either way. She just went ahead and went with her plan.

Using magic, she forced Avok’s quintessence to go towards Pidge and even enter her. Feeling the energy fill her, Pidge let out an inhuman screech, pain welling up inside her. More than that, there were vats of druid tampered quintessence near the pod and even hooked to it. The canisters started to drain as the corrupted energy filled Pidge.

There was nothing anyone could do to stop Honerva. Before Drek could try to get any sort of mental strength to will himself to try and save his friend, sentries entered the room and detained him, Kullo, and Bandor. The three were apprehended, held in place as Pidge cried out in pain, quintessence filling her. When she stopped screaming, she went limp inside the pod, her eyes barely open.

Honerva went over to Pidge and checked on her. Pidge had endured and somehow survived the transfer of quintessence. With the new Altean quintessence inside her, though, there were physical side effects. Marks on her face, one skirting along the side of the scar below her her eye, and her eyes changing colour.

Like Honerva’s own marks, contorted and dragging down along her face, the ones on Pidge’s face did the same thing. They were a deep purple, practically contrasting her white hair and pale skin. And her eyes matched Honerva’s.

“There is no escape this time, little Pidge.” Honerva whispered softly. She then held out her hand and stepped back, getting the pod to close up and go up inside the new robotic monster. Once fully inside, the lights on it glowed, showing to be activated. “You are now mine.”

“Pidge… no...” Kullo whimpered.

Honerva looked over. “Have those three put in a cell, make sure the two traitors can’t activate anything to escape.” she ordered. The sentries complied and took the other teens away.

-+-+-+-

Red pupils watched from the darkness, the figure hiding up inside a vent and going ultimately undetected. He wanted to stop it all from happening, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to make a difference. If anything, he would have been killed, too. Instead, he could only watch, using a small device to record what happened so he could report back. Once the group of kids were taken away and Pidge was truly trapped in the monster, he went back further into the vent, finding his way back to where he needed to be.

It took a moment, but Lieutenant Dazer managed to return to Sendak. He watched for a moment as the Galran fixed a patch over his eye where the mechanical piece used to be.

“Commander, sir...” Dazer looked worried.

“The witch won’t be making it easy to get the others out of here, hmm?” Sendak inquired. He looked back at the pale purple Galran.

Dazer sighed. He then handed over the device so that Sendak could see for himself. “That would be an understatement, sir.”

Sendak observed the data that his lieutenant could obtain, anger and worry filling him with each passing tick. In frustration, he crushed the device in his hand. “That damn witch...”

“Sir, I know you want to do something for Pidge but… we won’t be able to on our own. And I don’t think we’d have the help of the empire with us… plus, Haggar… no… Honerva? Her magic…” Dazer looked concerned. “We may need to look for help elsewhere…”

Sendak sighed. He didn’t want that to be their only choice, but he knew their options were greatly limited. “Then we best make haste so we can get her out of there.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oooh. This... this is gonna hurt. The angst...  
> No matter the AU, I just can't be good to Avok. But this is because in DotU, if my research was right and I remembered it correctly, it didn't go well for him, either.  
> Also, the markings to Pidge, I had some ideas of that for awhile, influenced by Haggar. And I'm actually glad it was able to be worked out. And pretty self explained as to how.  
> Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. If you have feels, especially worry for Pidge and her friends, then good, it means I've done my job.  
> Well, until next time!


End file.
